Posted on: July 21, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

The Aggrolites – Reggae Hit L.A. / 2007 Hellcat / 15 Tracks / http://www.aggroreggae.com / http://www.hell-cat.com /

The disc opens up with “Work It”, which  uses a reggae sound that has been digitized to give the overall sound a tweak that has not been done to my knowledge. The rest of the track is fairly normal reggae fare, with a slow beat, bassy vocals, and a laid-back arrangement style that will get individuals up and grooving slowly. “Faster Bullet” still uses the overall reggae sound to fuel the song, but the inclusion of a psychedelic rock and funk blend of style makes this song almost perfect for the “Deathproof” soundtrack or for seventies pop radio.

Regardless of what they are doing in these early tracks, The Aggrolites have started strongly and will keep individuals interested through this first section. The momentum that was created during these early track is paused for the mainly instrumental song “You Got 5”. The band is able to create something that will not cause individuals to turn their sound system off. This is due to the fact that this instrumental track continues changes up its’ composition, throwing in new pieces while using repeated lines and styles for maximum effect. This means that The Aggrolites do not come off this album with an injured momentum; “Reconcile” can work with the same energy that ended “Faster Bullet”. “Reconcile” is more of a blend of the slower and quicker styles that both have made imnpressions on “Reggae Hit L.A.” to this point.

The only problem that one can see with this track is that it does not vary in composition in the same way as “You Got 5”. Driving the same sounds into the ground, the track feels much too long; the band would have done better cutting the track off by the two minute mark. The band succeeds the most when the reggae sound that the band is known for has other influences added to it. For example, the title track of “Reggae Hit L.A.” is perhaps the track that succeeds the most, and this is because there is a very heavy soul influence to the overall sound. The Aggrolites can succeed if they blend together a multitude of styles to the reggae sound that they present on this album, but will find a much difficult go of things if they try to create a pure reggae album. Keep an ear to the ground when it comes to The Aggrolites, and one will be surprised.

Top Tracks: Reggae Hit L.A., Lucky Streak

Rating: 4.5/10

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