Live Review: The Skatalites, Echo Drama

Local act Echo Drama play fairly rudimental dub-reggae, featuring all the hallmarks of deep bass groove, echoed snare drum and offbeat guitar, which recalls contemporaries such as The Black Seeds and Fat Freddy’s Drop. What sets them apart however are the vocals; the band is fronted by Zimbabwean soul singer Thando Sikwila and emcee Sinks, who rotates between Jamaican-inspired toasting and hip hop poetics. Opening for the masters of a genre is often fraught with danger, but they provide a pleasant welcome for what is to come.

It’s rare that a band can hold your attention for over two hours, let alone one playing largely instrumental music, but that’s where The Skatalites are different; they aren’t your normal band. Assembling the finest musicians from Jamaica and the United States together on stage, led by 78-year-old saxophone player/founding member Lester Sterling, it’s a sight to behold. Celebrating 50 years since their formation and fresh from a short, at least by their standards, set at Meredith Music Festival, tonight is all about The Skatalites.

Their set draws from a vast repertoire of music and is thoughtfully curated into three sections: instrumentals (such as Freedom Sounds, Latin Goes Ska and James Bond Theme), which start the night; masterpieces including You’re Wondering Now and Bob Marley songs Simmer Down and Nice Time, which see original member and Queen Of Ska, Doreen Shaffer, take to the stage on vocal duties; and classics such as Guns Of Navarone and The Beatles’ I Should Have Known Better.

Playing the purest form of ska, The Skatalites let their instruments do the talking, without gimmick, sound desk effects and, for the most part, lyrics. For a band that are most significantly known as backing musicians to the likes of Bob Marley, Alton Ellis and Toots & The Maytals, tonight The Skatalites prove that they are well and truly deserving of their own spotlight.