It seems like barely any time has elapsed since Smoke & Mirrors Soundsystem dropped last summer’s No. 10 Dubbing Street LP which covered Big Audio Dynamite’s entire 1986 album No. 10 Upping Street inna reggae stylee and now here’s a new long player of original material, Return Of The Numbers, less than six months later. It is of course a direct sequel to 2021’s Strength In Numbers LP, and the Smoke & Mirrors Soundsystem is, of course, the ongoing project of John Roy of San Diego outfit Unsteady which began as a remote operation during the Pandemic with Roy collaborating with a host of musicians and singers across the ether. Since its inception, the project’s personnel has consisted of a revolving ‘cast’ of thousands well, quite a few anyway – depending on the release. One thing has remained constant throughout though; irrespective of who was involved and when, all the project’s outputs have delivered quality music. Incidentally, Roy’s not shitting you calling this one Return Of The Numbers – no fewer than 48 (!) people made up the personnel involved and besides our man himself, they pretty much number the great and good of the contemporary ska, rocksteady, boss reggae and roots scenes including members of The Aggrolites, The Slackers, Skatalites, The Scofflaws and Agent Jay.
Return Of The Numbers‘ content covers all of the genres and sub-genres listed above with a bit of Latin thrown in besides on the cumbia-esque Mala Salud. Things kick off with Roy himself singing on the Eight Hours A Day, a blistering ska anthem for wage slaves everywhere, encouraging them to think twice before signing up for the man’s agenda. This is followed by the uptempo but minor key rootsy skank of Wolf Clothes on which singer Tori Roze continues sticking it to the man with a warning to those who enable the few to screw the many. Victory Garden brings things back the ska – albeit instrumental this time – while Nothing To Lose returns to rootsier vibrations and Motive (featuring Loving Paupers singer Kelly Di Filippo) approaches the ‘tropical pop’ of Hollie Cook. Listen out also for two of the monkey’s favourite cuts – Under That Rock and album highlight Getting Through It. The former is the LP closer, a bluebeat-ish affair that goes so far back into the roots of ska its rhythm is reminiscent of the sort of shuffling 50s American R&B (such as Fats Domino’s Be My Guest) that, heard by Jamaicans on shortwave radio back in the day, inspired the rise of ska in the early sixties. The second of these two meanwhile is a splendid piece of Californian boss reggae of the kind that The Aggrolites have built their career on with Roy again on vocals taking a wry look at everyday bollocks and managing to rise above it, humour intact. And we could all do with a bit of humour in these benighted times!
(Out 28 March on Escape Hatch Records)