Man From Wareika

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The Rocksteady 7 is an influential American ska and jazz band from NYC. Since the early '90s the group has consisted of tenor saxophonist and band leader David Hillyard (The Slackers) as well as percussionist Larry McDonald. In live performances, they are supported by a rotating cast of musicians, including drummer Eddie Ocampo and Dave Wake on keys among others. Given reggae's globally reaching influence, the Rocksteady 7 holds true to the genre's roots and the self-described "Jamaican Jazz" sound combines ska, rocksteady and reggae with extended jazz improvisation, intricate melodies, and complex harmonies. The group incorporates many diverse elements of world music with rocksteady rhythms, including ska, jazz, calypso, as well as early African and American jazz influences.

The Rocksteady 7 continues it series of tributes to the Jamaican Jazz masters at Hank's, with this concert focusing on the music of the late, great Rico Rodriguez. Expect two sets of sounds drawn from the earliest days of ska (Rico's work with Count Ossie and Prince Buster), his late '60s reggae days in Brixton, his seminal 1977 album on Island/Blue Note, and his crucial work with The Specials.


100dBs is a producer and DJ living in Brooklyn whose signature style blends performance and selection: astral echo pedal on a wild crate-digger's chase through the genealogy of a tune. He came up listening to Kraftwerk and Giorgio Moroder, thanks to the bootleg cassettes his mother managed to bring with her from Cold War Romania. An adolescent encounter with a Lee Perry record flipped his whole world and led to formative dub experiments on an old four-track. He got his start spinning hip hop nights on the Lower East Side and has toured the world since. He's rocked parties for burners, breakers, Berlin artists and Brooklyn's reggae revivalists.

Friday, September 22nd at Hank's Saloon
46 Third Avenue (at Atlantic), Brooklyn, U.S.A.
Doors at 8PM. $8 cover. 21+ with ID.