| Ziggy Marley-Wild And Free |
| Written by Rishbha Bhagi | |||
| Thursday, 03 November 2011 08:52 | |||
|
 Ziggy Marley’s latest album, “Wild And Free,” brings the expressive reggae flavour that Marley is known for in full force. In his usual style, his songs are all trying to say something – regardless of whether you agree with the content of what he is saying or not, they are all upbeat tracks set to infectious hooks and beats. Marley makes a conscious effort to try to raise some kind of awareness about various issues through his music; although it can be argued that it’s possible for his lyrics to come off as a series of platitudes, at the very least Marley provides good tunes to move to.
Of course, when your dad is Bob Marley, it must be hard not to get lost in his prodigious shadow, but Ziggy Marley has long proven that he is capable of standing on his own. Marley new album is synonymous with good reggae that one probably won’t get tired of hearing; it’s easy listening in the literal sense. Whether he’s singing his tunes styled akin to songs of the original reggae masters like Desmond Dekker and Prince Buster or singing about political and socio-economic issues, Marley has successfully defined himself as an influenced yet distinctive artist that steadily gets better with each album he puts out.
The record starts off with the title track, a great opener made up of the carefree melodies that Ziggy Marley is known for. “Wild And Free” is a proper reggae song, an easy melody and lyrics talking about an ideal society in which marijuana trees blow in the breeze… good times. Also, that man complementing Marley’s voice… Woody Harrelson, is that really you? Because you sound awesome. Virtually every song on “Wild And Free” is a good one. In fact, even if a song is underwhelming compared to the rest of the album, it’s still pretty damn good. “Personal Revolution” mixes Marley’s soulful vocals against a steady marching beat just before it breaks down into a compelling ode to social change, an idiosyncratic musical marriage that only proper reggae is capable of achieving. “Mmmm Mmmm” is like mood music, even though it’s totally not about getting it on. When you’ve given people the desire to groove it to a straight up social critique song, you can officially pat yourself on the back. On “It,” the classic Heavy D accompanies Marley in the vocal duties. Heavy D sure has come a long way from his days of chilling with The Boyz, but he’s still legit. I mean, it’s one thing to have Biggie namedrop you in a song – it’s another thing when that song is “Juicy.” As if his own imperative contributions to hip hop weren’t enough, this fact basically allows Heavy D to do whatever the hell he wants. His vocals on “It” provide a fresh sense to the track and the song is a good depiction of modern reggae deriving essentials of traditional reggae. Marley seamlessly mixes touches of other musical elements to spice up the reggae album, whether it be a funky guitar solo on “Forward To Love,” the hip vibes of “Roads Less Travelled,” or the singalong melody of “A Sign.” If you like reggae music, chances are that you will dig “Wild And Free.” It’s proper reggae, not any of its overly poppy derivatives, and it’s set against a contrasting backdrop of classical and modern styles of reggae, two notions which Marley manages to bind. Keeping the guest vocalists to a minimum and focusing more on making good “new old” reggae, “Wild And Free” reinstates Ziggy Marley’s position as being able to illuminate the inevitable influences of his father and other traditional reggae artists while simultaneously adding his own contemporary touch.
|
