Our beds were literally in the mic booth and it was the dead of winter’ — Bedouin Soundclash don’t need no comfortable life
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In 2005, a then-unknown reggae trio from the University of Guelph in Ontario scored a massive radio hit with the catchy “When the Night Feels My Song.” Suddenly, Bedouin Soundclash was propelled across North America, performing at the Vans Warped Tour and selling out mid-level venues across the country. That song, a sleepy summer ballad beaming with plaintive reggae chords and comforting vocals, boosted sales of the band’s sophomore record and within a few months, Sounding a Mosaic was a certifiable hit.
Two years on from their original success, the band has grown considerably, toured globally and made lots of friends along the way — including Darryl Jennifer, founder of seminal reggae-punk outfit Bad Brains. Under his guidance, the trio went back to the studio to add to sessions they completed at around the same time their debut was recorded. The result is the next stage in the band’s career, this summer’s Street Gospels. While Sounding a Mosaic was a gritty, political call-to-arms that messed with raucous reggae, fierce pop and Latin influences, Street Gospels is more mature, laid-back and soulfully driven. Choosing a melodic, down-tempo approach, Street Gospels finds the band sounding relaxed, comfortable and confident.
“We recorded the album in two sessions, two years apart from each other,” explains drummer Pat Pengally. “The second session was in the winter of 2006. We went down to Woodstock, N.Y., where Darryl Jennifer lives and recorded in a cabin-studio owned by a friend of his. We lived in the cabin. Our beds were literally in the mic booth and it was the dead of winter, so we didn't leave the house much, as it was in the middle of the woods. This resulted, I think, in a much more casual experience when compared to being in a typical studio.”
The lucid, constrained approach shows in the songs — especially “12:59 Lullaby” and “Trinco Dog,” which exemplify the relaxed atmosphere of the second recording sessions. Rarely does the trio explode as much as they did in previous exercises. Instead, Street Gospels is a smart, contemplative affair that displays a band comfortable with each melody.
“The songs, in my opinion, deal with changing perspectives and shifting foundations, making mistakes in life, the death of family members and love and loss,” Pengally says. “I think underlying everything, there is a lot of hope within the songs here.”
That hope may stem from the success of Sounding a Mosaic, which made prepping Street Gospels easier. Despite the demands placed on bands who’ve had radio hits, the trio never tries too hard on the album, deliberately avoiding forcing sounds that do not fit the mood.
“This was the first record we made where there was already an audience waiting to hear it,” says Pengally. “We're definitely fortunate for that. Still, I think what we've been trying to accomplish since we began playing music together has more or less remained the same: to keep pushing ourselves musically and to create something together which is saying something new and interesting. Having the audience ready to hear definitely helped push that forward.”
The other force pushing the band onwards was Bad Brains’ Jennifer. His production influence is all over Street Gospels. “We've known Darryl for a few years,” affirms Pengally. “At this point, he is a close friend and in that sense, more a guardian to the band than a typical producer. Beyond being an incredible musician, he is an amazing person, and I think it is the life experiences he shared with us over the years that have been most inspiring and the most influential to the overall vibe within the studio. You can definitely hear him in these songs.”
