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| Mavado |
Two new bombs on the Xplosion
Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
Ahh. 'Tis another Thursday night at the Catherine Hall Centre,
the heart and soul of Red Stripe Reggae Sumfest, when the dancehall
giants will go head to head in front of what is traditionally the
festival's largest audience.
It is not just another Thursday night, though; the new guard, which
seems that it is here to stay, has joined the long-time dancehall
standouts. It is the first Sumfest that the new generation, with
their emphasis on clever lyrics, has been so well represented, with
Vybz Kartel, Assassin, Mavado, Munga Honourable, Busy Signal and
Aidonia all on the bill. They came along at different times since
2000, with the 1990s 'elders' represented by Beenie Man, Bounty
Killer, Lady Saw, Elephant Man, Cham and Mr. Vegas. Hmmm. Ninja
Man is of '80s vintage.
So whose night is it? I have two picks, the man from Cassava Piece,
Mavado, and the gangster ras himself, Munga Honourable. Not that
the older guard will fade; the Angel thing between Beenie and Bounty
(which played out in brawling lyrical fashion last year) has faded,
though, and so has, to a large extent, the extreme dancing fever
of say three years ago.
scorching
Mavado is scorching, from his vantage point on the 'gully side'
to his take on the spiritual of Amazing Grace, tossing in references
to 'Sizzla fas' bike' and moving the ladies as he squeezes their
you know what like the trigger of a you know what.
Munga Honourable is, apparently, bad from him born (lyrically,
at least) and observes that "gangster do dem own ting, neva
lef dem chrome ting". When he tells the ladies to "wine
pon it an' talk to me" they tend to scream in what is a language
all of their own.
So, for me it is a double, as the latest dancehall generation makes
its mark on Sumfest's Xplosion.
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