The influence of dub on modern
music is so great as to be nearly
incalculable. Besides the obvious
imprint it has left on hip-hop and
every variety of electronic music,
and the impact it has had on mixing
and post-production (the modern
concept of the “remix” owes its
entire existence to dub), it has
also had a considerable influence
on rock music. The Clash took great
inspiration from this roots reggae
offshoot, as did post-punk bands like
John Lydon’s Public Image Ltd., The
Slits, and Pere Ubu. Hardcore got an
early dub injection from rasta-punks
Bad Brains, which continued to resonate
in the music of Fugazi, Blind Idiot God,
and other progressive minded artists
associated with post-hardcore. Newer
dub-influenced acts like Dub Trio and
Matisyahu take these sounds and put
them in a blender with hip-hop, metal,
and other influences. Even mainstream
rock acts like The Police and No Doubt
incorporated dub elements prominently
in their music.
From a guitarist’s perspective, playing
dub is uniquely challenging. One must
have a firm grasp of reggae styles and
rhythmic nuances, to begin with. And
because dub is all about the bass and
drums, a guitarist in a live dub ensemble
must strike a delicate balance between
leaving space and creating it, enhancing
the
groove
and
manufacturing
atmosphere without distracting from the
hypnotic flow of the music. Adding an
extra layer of complexity is the fact that
most of the effects on dub recordings
are created in post-production by a
mix engineer, most likely using some
combination of high-end hardware
devices and (in the modern era, at least)
plug-ins. Many of these effects can be
difficult or impossible to replicate live
with pedals, or at the very least will
require a great deal of orchestration and
tap dancing maneuvers on the part of
the guitarist. That is not to say that such
a thing can’t be done, however (see Dub
Trio live if you don’t believe me).
For the guitarist who wants to create
a convincingly dubby atmosphere on
stage, certain effects will be needed.
One’s pedalboard need not be overly
complicated or unwieldy, but dub is an
effects-heavy style of music to be sure,
and a functional dub pedalboard might
look a lot like a shoegaze or post-rock
pedalboard, minus most of the fuzz
and distortion boxes. It is not a genre
that typically requires much in the
way of dirty sounds, but modulation,
filters, delay, reverb, EQ, pitch-bending,
and synthesizer-like effects could all
be appropriate, depending on the
circumstances. What follows is a primer
in essential dub effects for the guitar
player.
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