Kingston Dub Club

Jamaica’s Roots Reggae HQ

I remember what it had been like, that first time I experienced the Kingston Dub Club. It was shrouded in mystery, but I suppose that was also a part of the journey. I’d been hearing about it from a friend with no concrete labels to readily identify what this place and its functions were. The Kingston Dub Club is an absolute experience, from the rumors to the physical journey, the physical place, and undoubtedly the all night dubbing session. But it never came quite so clear to me, and anyone for that matter, when you heard about Dub Club for the first time, you wanted to go, even though you weren’t sure what you would be going to. There was something about not being able to amply describe the place in a conversation. It didn’t fit in a conversation. If you got a description of Dub Club, it would be complete stream of consciousness, from the sounds, to the smells, the sights and most key of all these was the energy. You would hear things like “it jus have a vibe” “the energy was just oneness”. Nowadays Kingston Dub Club is the centre of the weekly activity within the Jamaican roots music movement. Slowly becoming more and more of a hotspot for Kingston nightlife Although descriptions like “it just have a vibe” identified what seemed like intangible  experiences, it was never less tangible than the trees we were now driving past as we made our sojourn to this mystic place. “A musical magic carpet ride, each and every Sunday” the words from the sage Gabre Selassie rang in my head as the drive up skyline continued, Reggae Mountain they called this place. Of late it had become a high profile area, with all the roots reggae events taking place in around the space, not to mention it was home to many upcoming reggae artistes or musicians. Chief of whom was the man called Gabre Selassie, who we were on our way to see. The roads wind, twist and turn uphill, the further up the crisper the air became. We finally arrived and descended into the venue of Kingston Dub Club. It was overcast and no one was around, in contrast to its typical population on Sunday nights. LuLu one of Gabre’s pet dogs greets us as we enter the deck area. The view was serene; Kingston is beautiful from this height. It was quiet, the place is away from the noise and confusion of the city, but still right above it giving it easy enough access. Gabre joins us on the deck and a reasoning progresses. 

Were you born here?

Yeah man. Born in the late sixties, suh yuh know mi get a likkle part of the sixties vibration. Even though I was a baby dem time deh. Suh yeah growing for me was great in Jamaica. How yuh mean man, live just like any ordinary Jamaican yute. Yuh know, run up and down inna di mountains, run up and down inna di gully, eat fruits off di tree til yuh belly full, play marble, fly kite, yuh know. Do everything, regular yute enuh….  (Even his voice is vibrant, like a living speaker box).

Many people have been coming here for a while before it became so popular, and I even remember the first time I came and you mentioned “No flyers or nutten, just tell a friend to tell a friend”. Did you see it becoming what it is now; was this all a part of a master plan?

Well… Dub Club, is long time we been trying to we trying to work with the concept inna Jamaica. Long time we tryin it, y’nuh. Different venues over the years, I did always have a picture inna my mind of a big dance, ram and I was always seeing that in my mind.

Tell us how the idea came about and how it manifested before your own eyes, give us a Gabre perspective.

Alright well. Mi a play music from long time enuh, from mi inna prep school mi a select sound, come right up. But we never always roots music and Rasta music like what we play now. We were always just playing the music of the day, whatever regular sound would play, you know, a party sound, a uptown sound. It was a uptown sound, a uptown dancehall sound.  But when we say we start to change we view, we outlook in life and start move inna Rastafari way now, it change up the whole way that we play the music and listen to the music. We start get deep into the roots music and ting.  I remember trying to bring that out to the public at that time. But because of where the music was and still is inna di dancehall, it wasn’t accepted, dem nah go with that y’nuh. So fi years we just deh deh a do we likkle ting, y’nuh keep we likkle party with one and two friends that we know like dem kinda music deh.

There is a place in London called the Dub Club that started from inna di 80s. Is a place that uhh…keep once a week and them feature heavy, deep, underground roots music. Dem feature well known sound systems, dem feature upcoming sound systems and them give them an arena that dem can expose themselves y’nuh. I realize in England, when I did go there, that it have two separate market place when it come to Jamaican music. If you want dancehall music, the best of it was right there, David Rodigan, Beenie Man a come next week. But if you want deep roots music, the best of it is also there. When mi come back a Jamaica now, mi a say, how come where the music start we don’t have that option, is either you go dancehall or you stay a yuh yard. Or yuh wait on ahhm, and this came late too, yuh wait on a Tony Rebel show and a one likkle ting that will pop up for I&I to enjoy ourself. So a deh so it start, just trying to give the people dem a option you know. Trying to preserve our culture that come from Jamaica. Yuh si wah mi a seh? Yeah and giving back di people dem owna culture and dem owna history, suh a deh so it come from. Mi realize say, there was people opening different branches or franchise, like them have a Geneva dub club, dem have a dub club in California so, we came up with that idea of having a Kingston Dub Club, Jamaica the headquarters or the foundation for roots music we should have a dub club too. So I started the Kingston Dub Club.

We understand that it’s built off a legacy, Rockers International, explain how this played its part.

It play a part where, when we a trod Rasta, as yutes, one of my elders you know, and di yute dem in di Rasta trod dem stay close to dem elders and learn from them elders. So Pablo, Augustus Pablo, was one of my elders. I got the opportunity and the blessing to be able to go ‘mongst him. Work with him on a musical level; learn from him on a musical level, spiritual level and a cultural level. Working with him over the years, him did have a sound system called Rockers International. Because him was dealing with production dem time deh him neva really have the time to pay attention to the sound, so it would normally just play at home in the yard. So being that I was already a selector, I start to select the sound and that was the beginning of it and from him move on I & I still a select the sound and defend the Rockers name out deh inna di world. Him son now Addis grown up so him also deh pon di front line picking up forward the Rockers vibration and putting strength forward into the Rockers label and the whole foundation. Is a timing enuh, because it all come at a time when the earth itself a move toward a more conscious way of thinking and it even play out inna Jamaica where the youths dem rising up and a make a difference in the message in the music and it becoming very popular again. So all of that culminating together, it work together yuh understand. So it strengthen each other and grow together, so we give thanks.

Looking at a place like this from the outside in, You appeared to have pulled a vision into reality, there is just some magic about this place, what would you say that element of surrealism comes from?

Well aside from the fact that we in the hills, that alone bring a vibes. Combine that with conscious roots music, down to earth music, natural music it fit the natural surroundings. Really the only thing I can really say is just the blessing of the almighty, the blessing of Jah yuh nuh see it. Is just the blessing of the universe that it work out so, cause yeah it seem like I living a vision yes. Give thanks that we can have a vision and to see it manifest, even in your own lifetime and I know there is nuff more to come. Because the ultimate mission to me, my likkle contribution, you know I’m not a musician, my contribution to the movement of the music, is to see thousands more like I & I rise up. A really deh suh it deh enuh, cause yeah Dub Club nice, it’s good to know that it’s somewhat an HQ venue for roots music on a weekly level. But really we need to get it out there wider. Cause di I dem blessed too, to be able to have something like this, a whole heap a youths would love to have something like Dub Club, and them don’t have that inna St. Elizabeth, or down the country. So within sound man ting, the majority of us is still swimming upstream, majority is against us but we chipping away at it likkle by likkle. Yuh know Yaadcore rising up as a younger youth too, and him make it easier, more attractive to a younger generation. Because a youth could all see me a do it and say yeah him can do it cause him a elder, but when yuh see a younger youth now come do it too, them say it can be done. Is a ripple effect, yuh have Supa Nova, yuh know everybody right now. So it’s a handful of us now but, you know but the vision don’t just stop at Dub Club every Sunday. To me that is my pleasure, cause with or without the I dem coming here I would be playing my sound system, I love my sound system enuh. One of the first things we do is heal ourselves first, and from we feel good we know say that goodness will transmit to whoever deh yah. But ultimately with or without di I dem I&I a medicate myself with the sound system and roots music. So we want it more active, we hope say it can carry out a ripple effect. It moving slowly but surely and even gaining the attention of those in the dancehall world. We nah go say all of them going change up and ting, yuh know some of them going be bandwagonists , some a dem a go just jump on because I guess some people saying is the thing.  But all a dem thing deh add in to a positive vibe, whether you fake or not or whatever, it still give an energy. Everybody a go play a role.

To many this is the Kingston Dub Club, but to Gabre and his family, this is home a comfortable one. Would you say you experience this place differently from others, what is a day in the life of Gabre like?

Well it change in more recent time now because of the advent of the Dub Club and uhmm… yeah we find seh outside of Sundays the dub club attracting people every week and you know I live here. I always run this joke and seh “Bwoy as much as I was trying to run away from the stereotype of a Chinese man a live on top of him shop, and I end up living on top of mi shop”….(laughs)…. yuh know dem likkle way deh? I enjoy it because I’m near, yeah I work from home, and ahmm… but in some ways me is a more private person. Just even through my nature, so in sometimes it becomes a problem to me, having to have this place as it is and I’m living here too. Because sometime the time that we used to have for ourselves we don’t really have that again, and you know we treasure dem time deh. We a fight for it, to get it more time. But normally if Dub Club wasn’t here, my days are like sitting in Zion, cause yuh know we up in the hills nice surroundings with the greenery and the air. But right now my desire is to go higher up in the hills, get cleaner air. We want a piece of land with some water, apart from water commission water, that to me is more of a vision than even Dub Club. 

How do you feel about the crop of young conscious musicians who are taking up the mantle which you and your peers have been championing over the years?

I feel great. How yuh mean? That is a part of the vision, it’s a part of the fulfillment of prophecy. We encourage it, we just want it to go inna di righta direction and not make the ways of that world divide and conquer I & I, like even many other elders before we. We just hope and pray say ones and one keep that love inna it and don’t lose the love because of other things. Otherwise than that it is great, man and it’s great that we link with the youths dem and have such a vibes with dem still.

Photos by Jik Reuben

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