Track Of The Week #3

Mavado - So Special

And so, here begins my plunge into Dancehall. I have dabbled in previous years, Cutty Ranks, Burro Banton, a dash of Sean Paul, but I have never committed to any deeper level until now. Mavado is a cool artist for sure, but his older track are definitely stronger. This one for example… it’s so raw. Not cleanly produced, not big budget, just authentically dutty. A genre convention I am noticing with Dancehall, is they don’t give a fuck about singing “in key” or “on beat”, its just pure spontaneous song writing. They are doing what sounds right, not what fits with predefined rules. At least by mainstream music standards. When you listen to this track, it’s very apparent Mavado is not singing in key, and yet, it still works perfectly. If anything it adds to the vibe. Its very punk honestly.

Happy Listening,
Sandy Woodhouse