Sell Out Records - A Music Review Blog

Alright, this is one of the most expansive of Christmas records that I will be reviewing this month. This is 50 tracks of alternative Christmas music from the Trojan record label. Trojan and Studio One are the most famous and iconic of labels from Jamaica. They specialize in reggae, ska, and dub music. These tracks aren’t new, they are from back in the day, and they all represent that Jamaican flavor that you would expect from reggae records. As far as I’m concerned, the Trojan Christmas Box Set is perhaps the best stocking stuffer you’re going to get today. I first caught wind of this in Idaho. I was miserable one Christmas, and they had this for 5 bucks used, so you know me, I had to purchase it. It cheered me up that Christmas as 50 tracks of compelling Jamaican flavor came coming through my stereo. There are some traditional elements here, but for the most part, each single artist does their own rendition of the classics, and sometimes, they completely butcher what you would expe...

I first heard of Matisyahu long ago. I was in college and found out about his reggae and rap stylings, and was absolutely floored. I picked up the original set of records, before anyone else was into him, and then he got into rock radio in Los Angeles. When KROQ started playing his records nonstop on the hour, every hour, I saw a huge influx of fans go his way. That meant that I was not going to be able to see him live because the ticket prices started to get absolutely insane. I ended up selling the out of print recordings of his initial records on a Jewish record label, and kept tabs on the rapper, reggae artist. I noticed a stylistic change in the records that he was putting out, and while I admired some of the songs, and the lyrical elements, there was a point of disconnect with the original works and the new updates. He also wasn’t the same Jewish icon that he was, and well, I moved on, like many others. However, with the release of “Live At Stubb’s Volume 3” , the artist comes ...