The five Eastern Switzerland based Reggae musicians of JAR will cast their second album called “Rolling Dice” out into the world on Jan 12, 2024. After the sudden disruption of their previous release tour for the 2020 debut LP «Love Rocket» due to pandemic reasons, the band did not fret but hustle to build new grooves and verses – and found themselves two years later and a bunch of songs richer, back in a recording studio.
Time for reflection was plenty and what stuck to the end was: Nobody can escape their fate; nonetheless we may as well have fun on the journey. The dice must keep rolling. And thus, this album is presented to a world in which the basslines are roaring, people and smoke are filling dancehalls, beer is flowing from the taps again, and friends swing in each others arms to good music. This is gonna be a blast – just like every time when JAR steps up to rock the floor!
Modern Reggae melts with classic Rocksteady and experimental influences from the experience of each band member with time-proven Traditional Ska. Like the vintage Hammond organ with a Leslie amp that gets a boost from modern distortion pedals and echo devices, the band’s music too captures the symbiosis between tradition and progress. It creates a unique sound that just won’t let you sit still. In summer, it fits right in and in winter, it keeps you warm.
It’s been recorded at Mountone Records Studios in Übersee, produced by Florian Strober (Keith & Tex, Stranger Cole, The Steadytones), Tobias Voges (Joris) and Franz Griess (Keller Steff Big Band) and subsequentially mixed and mastered by renowned Dub- and Reggae producer Umberto Echo in Munich. The twelve songs contained on the album tell stories, pass on experiences and raise a warning about our society which blindly follows materialism and illusions of power.
Amongst all these serious topics however, there still needs to be a time and a place for enjoyment and dancing, which never takes second place on the recoder: Heavy lyrics are wrapped into a grooving blanket, which carries the message. Other songs hit the party button without warning. There something in here for everybody: You just have to take a deep breath, listen, and start dancing to the sweet sound of Reggae. This proves e.g. their first single release «Sugar Man» (VÖ digital: December 15th).
