Killing Joke – In Dub (2014)

November 4, 2014

I like Killing Joke and I like dub (be that dub reggae or the same remixing technique applied to other genres) but I’ve got to be in the mood for both, so there’s no surprise that I aurally inhaled this gargantuan release in one entire sitting. It took some doing as In Dub is 3 hours long, and contains several remixes of the same few songs. I’m not sure when I’ll actually ever come back to this release again, but I did enjoy it, and it is (surprisingly) more than just a remix album.

Killing Joke’s average song structure just begs to be reworked in a rub-a-dub style, meng. I never really noticed it before, but the beats are really groovy. Jaz Coleman’s voice fits the echoic, stoned dubs perfectly. Some of the remixes of “Ghosts of Ladbroke Grove” are simply ethereal. “Eighties” is much sparser here, almost as if sung and performed by ghosts of that decade. Classic! Some of the tracks have genuine reggae elements added to them too, which is just lovely.

I almost went to see one of the live shows on the In Dub tour, but when I found out it was just Youth on the stage and not the entire band I decided to be a good slave to the system and not anger my boss by requesting even more time off. What can you do, eh?

Skin up, breh.