Mad Professor/Puls Der Zeit
Meet in Berlin at Checkpoint Charlie
RAS Records (reissue - www.rasrecords.com)

On this CD re-release from formerly cassette-only label ROIR, dubmaster Mad Professor became a dubmeister for a 1988 encounter with German techheads Puls Der Zeit. The results are mixed, as one might expect from this unusual graft of electronica onto dub roots (and German onto Jamaican music). There are some successes, though. "Abu Dhabi Check" has a haunting feel, and the vocals of Puls's Soer La Blanche (White Sister) are reminiscent of Nico of Velvet Underground fame, for better or for worse. "Taugenichts" is a bouncy reggae number, and would be a great song for German rastas to sing along to. German reggae is new to me, but the angular sound that Puls Der Zeit brings to the Professor's dub beats don't suggest unlimited optimism for growth. - Craig Tower

Comment on this music or the web site.
Write a Letter to the Editor