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Artist : Papa-B
Album Title : Untouchable
Styles : Dancehall Reggae / Traditional Reggae
Label : Toshiba EMI / Mighty Crown Entertainment
Reference Code : TOCT-25686
Released : 2005/06/06
Running Time : 46:34
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REVIEW >>> Untouchable is Papa-B's second major label album and just like with Fire Ball his previous album suffered greatly from the lack of studio time which made the album forgettable very soon after it's original release date. Even with the talent of one of the greatest reggae deejay's to grace the japanese reggae scene, Papa-B's debut on Toshiba EMI sounded rushed and definetely not on the level of most of his work outside the major label circles. Untouchable makes it obvious however that Mighty Crown and the business men at Toshiba have somewhat learned their lesson and given a bit more time for the artists to polish their work even though once again the album came out only 1 year after the previous effort. The style and direction of this album is very varied and represents many different styles in reggae music equipped with the magic touch of the man himself Papa-B. After putting out probably the best single in japanese reggae this year (Live Up & Rise), the expectations for this album were extremely high just like any Mighty Crown releases and im happy to say that the album doesn't dissapoint. For those waiting for the negative comments here goes... The album's quality hardly suffers due to the lack of studio time but it leads to the album being too short. There are only 10 tracks with the rest being interludes or alternative versions for the opener "Crasher" such as "Pressure" or "Snatcher". Despite having only 10 full tracks the album is very well balanced just like the Fire Ball album which most likely makes both of the albums a little better overall. Production side surprisingly is even better on this album compared to the Fire Ball (which is mostly produced by the same people) and the songs are more memorable which gives the album more replay value. Live Up & Rise easily takes the best track of the album honors and is still very catchy and makes you want to sing along everytime which is a rare thing for a political track. Papa-B has always been versatile with his work and is able to do great roots reggae and great dancehall tracks when he wants. The album features both styles but adds twists with it's jazz and bossa nova and even some 70's disco influences to one of the tracks which keeps the album interesting from beginning to the end and none of the tracks sound the same really and better yet it all sounds really fresh. The album is at it's best when listened from beginning to the end and a warning goes to all the fast forwarders, the album will greatly suffer when listening bits from here and there because the tracks greatly compliment each other when listened in the correct order. Untouchable is easily the best Papa-B album to date but doesn't necessarily compare to his better works on his indie days or his ever popular featuring works on various compilation albums. However the album is a much deeper experience than any of the man's previous works and i can easily recommend the album to those who are not familiar with any of Papa-B's works. The tracks this time around have genuine joy in them and it's obvious that the artist had fun recording the album since hardly any of the tracks sound forced or rushed. Just don't expect any club style dancehall from this album or you will be dissapointed. If you like reggae music and accept different styles of music then this is one of the best this year, despite the length and the fact that it will leave you wanting for more after the 45 minutes are done, but is that such a bad thing anyway? Rating : Words By : Jesse Viinikainen |
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01. Crasher 