Addis Pablo; Best of both worlds

Much of Jamaica’s history, when revisited, can feel like a treasure hunt. From the unearthing of names and events, to the origins of traditions unfurled, it is always pleasant to discover the older reasons behind the nature of Jamaican identity. As a melting pot it’s always been easy to call on peculiar, but potent connections Jamaica has with other countries and cultures. In this case, the eastern world has a long and interesting history with that of Jamaica, which is geographically claimed within the western hemisphere. One key musician who understood this connection keenly was Augustus Pablo, he sought to express it through an odd but apt instrument; the melodica. This instrument allowed him to tap into the mystic sounds of the east, blending them with the sounds of roots reggae music. One generation later, his son Addis Pablo, continues the great work of not just producing powerful music but being the vessel through which that connection between Jamaica and the east, can be expressed. Addis’ latest release, the Dub Program is another addition to his growing contribution to the music as it shifts.

What’s your earliest memory of wanting to make music?

It’s hard to say because growing up in a musical environment, of course my Dad, you know the music was always there and instruments. He was always playing, it was a studio–everything, it was just a musical environment. I would always play around with keyboards, and drums, Niyabinghi drums, guitars, each instrument, just to listen to how they sound.

Do you play all of those now?

Well not entirely, I can play the drums now, I have some idea of the guitar but mainly the keyboard. Based on the sounds though I can identify certain sounds and chords but from that age I had a fascination with the sounds so I would just explore different types of music, like the actual sounds all these instruments make. At that early age I was even recording, because my Dad recorded a song with me at that time. So there was much musical activity, but later on around 14/15 I started to actively make beats on my computer or playing the melodica, practicing keyboard. So from an early age for myself about 6 or 7, but I actively started pursuing it more seriously around 15.

How early would you say you became aware of what your father was doing with music?

To me there was always an awareness because as I said, we were always coming from shows, going concerts, but I never know the extent to who or what he was to the world and other people. In my mind at the time, everybody do music, because that’s what I know. Is ony when I went to school I learned that people parents do other things, that everybody is not a Rasta, y’know like it’s different. So is more when I grew older I saw the difference and really learned who he was. At the same time he wasn’t the kind of person to really hype. He was reasoning all the time with his bredrins and talking about life but, not necessarily about who he was, what he accomplished or what he did. So it wasn’t really the easiest way to know unless somebody said it to me.

So you mostly learned that through other people?

Pretty much yea and as I grow older and start to listen to music more, doing music more and going around musicians that knew him, that’s where I would learn more.

Describe the underlying feeling you get from this genre and the feeling you try to give with it.

The music we play is called reggae music, and as you know it’s origins is in Rastafari. It’s pretty much and expression of Rastafari culture and livity. So there’s the heartbeat which is the Nyabinghi drums, the 1-2 order. For me the feeling is the most– music on a whole is pure, it comes from inside or inspiration outside. This music represents a truth, a reality, but at the same time, just a good feeling for your body mind and soul. Because it affects every part of your body and your lifestyle or livity. Outside of instrumental music, which I play the melodica, the vocals that accompany music teaches you a different way to live, if you don’t know the way. Even if you know it always reminds you of how to live, ways to carry yourself. So you listen to this constantly and it has an effect on your life.I do try to carry that feeling in anything I do, like if I play the melodica, if it’s a riddim, or acoustic jam. I tap into that feeling because that feeling is that created this music, it’s the foundation, from count ozzy and the drummers, the ska music, musicians getting together for groundations. To me in the creation of it– and as we know it coming from Africa, the beats the foundation, our history, it’s all apart of the feeling. It’s a really ancient sound that we’re representing and recreating in this time. We’re representing both the old and the new, which is a great feeling I can’t even describe in words but that is why we put it in music.

The music as you say, is very ancient, there is without a doubt a lot of the roots reggae there but it also has an eastern sound. The melodica especially.What’s the reasoning behind that?

I think what it is, the songs which my dad played and even myself, alot of the times were in minor chords and alot of eastern music is in minor scales as well, when compared to western music (which is mostly major), they describe the major keys as more dancey, happy vibe. The minor chords invoke the feelings of a trance vibes, sadness, thoughtfulness and alot of other emotions different from joy. These notes touch your mind, or the more mental parts of your brain.

There might be some science to that, as we know doctors can test what area of the brain is lighting up when experiencing things.

Yea so these frequencies, especially the melodica, being high pitched and wind instruments that add to that feeling. Even ethiopian music and sounds from the orthodox church carry a similar sound and feeling. So that’s why my dad always say like, east of the river nile and dem ting deh as his titles because that’s where those things come from.

What do you think was the thought process behind combining these two cultures through music?

Combining I think is just who we are because we come from that. Our roots lead back to africa, all of us, and Rastafari music and culture, Hailing His Majesty, everything is connected that way. It’s like left foot and right foot. So to represent this, to me, through music is just representing the culture or myself in the best way possible, because it is who we are. The sound is a representation of our being. So when you hear the sound you think of I&I, even if it’s bob marley it has a certain imagery, a certain lifestyle. Some people might think it’s just smoking weed but it has much more to it than that. So the sound is like a signal then, an identification of the people.

Talk about the process of Dub Program, what inspired it and how you put it together.

The Dub Program kinda came about because I was working on some beats and one of the ones I came up with was the track I used for the Congo Natty collab. It first featured a sample from Leroy Smart, that song called Captivity, I believe. The sample formed the bass of the riddim but eventually I took out the sample due to copyright and things like that. But that’s kinda how the inspiration for that came about; using classic samples and then creating beats either with them or around them. That was one of the first tracks that I made from it. Forward a Yaad, is something I created a while ago, and I pretty much remixed or did it over, but that was something I created maybe like ⅚ years ago and redid. It also featured a sample which is from Delinger and one of my dad’s recordings as well. I featured a guitar and vocal sample on that. The Shanique Marie, From Morning dub, that was something that was already kind of there, so I decided to include the dub version here. Initially the concept was bringing the classic samples to the new sounds. I have a drum machine which I used to program a lot of the beats and then incorporating that with the samples. The Dub came from obviously because it’s dub music, and the program because of the newer sounds with the drum machine.