Lee “Scratch” Perry feat. Brian Eno, “Here Come the Warm Dreads” (On-U Sound)
Here we have three of my favorite things in life converging on one track: reggae/dub innovator Lee “Scratch” Perry, rock iconoclast and ambient-music innovator Brian Eno, and puns. “Here Come the Warm Dreads,” of course, is a play on Eno’s classic 1974 debut solo LP, Here Come the Warm Jets, and the track itself is a reworking of “Makumba Rock” from Perry’s 2019 album, Rainford, which is receiving a companion dub makeover called Heavy Rain (out December 6). Even if you’re not enshrouded in a ganja haze right now, that’s a bit confusing, but just understand that On-U Sound label boss and producer extraordinaire Adrian Sherwood is at the controls, so all is right with world… and with “Here Come the Warm Dreads.”
“Makumba Rock” is a quirky, easy-going skank riddled with Perry’s grizzled toasting and cackles, cuíca (or is it a warped bicycle horn? Seal squeals?), and glazed with tranquil horn sighs. It’s a great track already, but “Here Come the Warm Dreads” is a true head-wrecker. Here, Perry, Eno, and Sherwood accentuate the fathoms-deep “Makumba” chant while adding disorienting dropouts, distorting and delaying the rhythm-guitar cha-ching to hell and back, and, in general, launching the track through a virtual fun-house hall of mirrors. These geezers deliver the psychedelic goods and then some.
