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Zion Train are
Dub/Dance pioneers and have been
undisputed leaders in the genre
for the past 2 decades. The band
were heavily involved in
alternative and DIY underground
culture in the UK during the
1990s as well as being purveyors
of the finest Roots Reggae music
throughout this period. They are
one of the finest live dub acts
on the planet and promoted the
practice of dynamic onstage dub
mixing which they perform
alongside acoustic instruments
and the best vocalists.
Zion Train was founded by Perch
(live dub mixing /production),
in 1990 and he was later joined
by Cod (melodica/production),
Tench (production), Molara
(voice), Hake (trumpet), and
Forkbeard (trombone). Between
2001 and 2005 Dubdadda added
extra live vocals and Bigga
replaced Forkbeard on trombone
in 2001, they were joined by
Richard Doswell on tenor sax in
2009. The live line-up has
always been very flexible,
varying from Perch and a
vocalist for sound-system gigs,
to an extended lineup for larger
events. Zion Train live always
features a variety of renowned
vocalists but primarily, the
band have been fronted by
Dubdadda.
Zion Train have been one of the
planet's most prolific groups,
along with a mammoth recorded
output and innumerable
production credits, remixes and
song writing collaborations they
have produced magazines,
CD-ROMs, Internet sites and
built sound systems. Their early
releases were on their own
Universal Egg label, until in
1995 they signed to China
Records. They released the
world's first promotional dub
music video for the 'Get Ready'
single and caused a furore with
the publicity campaign for their
‘Homegrown Fantasy’ album. Back
on their own Universal Egg label
since 1999, they have continued
to release quality dub,
electronica and world dance
music. Their work from the past
20 years still sounds fresh to
today's discerning ears.
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007 saw the release of the
band’s long awaited album ‘Live
as One’, their ninth. It was
awarded a coveted Jamaican
Reggae Grammy for ‘Best Dub
Album’. The album featured
vocals from Earl 16, Tippa Irie,
Dubdadda, YT, Marlene Johnson,
Raiz and Lua. It was incredibly
well received and the tour
engendered enthusiastic
responses in all territories
visited. They continued a pace
into 2008/09 with shows in
regions not previously covered,
including Japan, Scandinavia and
The Baltic states. There were
also hugely successful festival
appearances throughout the
summer, highlights in the UK
included Arcadia Spectacular at
Glastonbury and WickerMan
festival, also Reggae Geel in
Belgium, Rototom Sunsplash in
Italy and Reggae Sun Ska in
France.
2009 was rounded
off with a further tour to
promote the release of the ‘Live
as One Remixed’ album. Taking in
15 nations to present the next
installment, they received rave
reviews throughout. The album
was remixed with imagination,
quality and depth, by
like-minded musicians, bringing
amazing results. It involved
friends and collaborators in
regions as diverse as Poland,
Crete, Brazil, Mexico, Croatia,
France, Italy and of course UK,
The band had a storming Summer
of festivals in 2010, highlights
included; Sunrise & Beat Herder
in the UK, Sudoeste in Portugal,
Ostrava in Czech Republic and
Ostroda Reggae festival in
Poland.
From the
beginning of 2010 Perch was back
in the studio writing for the
next Zion Train album ‘State of
Mind’ which will be released in
September 2011. This was
previewed with a single,
entitled 'Rainbow Children', an
update of the Aswad classic with
Brinsley Forde joining Dubdadda
on vocals. Also, in June ‘The
Very Best of Zion Train – Dub
Revolutionaries’ will be
released on the highly respected
world music label Nascente, home
of recent releases from
Skatalites, Manu Dibango, Nusrat
Fateh Ali Khan and Ladysmith
Black Mambazo.
Zion Train recently completed
the 14 date ‘Dub Fiyah tour’ of
both US coasts, with Rocker T on
vocals. There was much
excitement as this was their
first trip Stateside for 15
years. Shows in; Oregon,
Northern California, San
Francisco, LA, Boston, Vermont,
Massachusets, Brooklyn and NYC,
will be followed by festivals
over the summer and then an
autumn tour to promote the new
album 'State Of Mind'.
Prospective dates for 2012
already include another USA
tour, a fifth tour of Japan, a
tour of Latin America as well a
visit to the Caribbean!
Listen to the Music of Zion Train
Zion Train Links:
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