Acclaimed Reggae-Rock group Roots of Creation (A.K.A. RoC) is excited to announce the release of “Dub Free or Die Vol. 1,” out now!
Ahead of the new album ROC has released a slew of outstanding singles including "Seven Nation Army"(White Stripes Reggae/Rock cover) ft. Hayley Jane, "Mammoth” and "Arabia" Ft. Mihali (of Twiddle), and "Light It Up" ft. Mighty Mystic. And most recently with their Reggae/Rock rendition cover of Allman Brothers’ “Soulshine.” So far the songs have garnered critical accolades from Relix, Live for Live Music, Reggaeville, Celebstoner, Top Shelf Music and more. All of the songs will be featured on the album, Dub Free or Die Vol. 1.
Like many artists, Roots of Creation wasn’t immune to the effects of the pandemic on the touring industry. Utilizing a platform that almost seemed built for navigating a disaster, RoC utilized the power of their tremendous fan base with Kickstarter. That support allowed them to properly record “Dub Free or Die vol #1” as a collaborative effort with the fans. The band first started recording the new album before “Grateful Dub (2018)” and deleted almost everything to only then start over. Soon after the pandemic wiped out their budget and with nothing but time at hand due to lock downs and zero in-person performances, they turned to Kickstarter and the fans saved the day! It is their first self-produced album made for the Roots of Creation DIE HARD fans who love that progressive Rock-and-Jam-meets-Reggae sound. The new album is chock-full of brand new, original Dub/Jammy instrumental compositions, with a handful of truly unique covers.
Frontman Brett Wilson adds, “the upcoming record “Dub Free or Die vol #1” is all about focusing on our instrumental songwriting. It was created for our diehard fans who travel to multiple shows a year, listen to bootlegs, pay attention to setlists and always score the latest merch drops. We are extremely blessed to have our tribe of ‘RoC family’ members to be there to support us through these crazy uncertain times and let us experiment, create and have a blast. These compositions tend to lend themselves to progressive rock, improvisation, soundscapes, rapid genre switches, and Dub Reggae EFX.”
Andrew Riordan (Dub King Productions) RoC sax player and album producer adds, “Personally, this album is very special to me. The band was kind enough to let me produce and take the reins of a lot of the music in this project. It was also the last project I completed in my old studio before I remodeled and gave it an overhaul. There are pieces of gear that I used that are no longer in service, that I think gives the record a certain sound. That also makes this project feel special. I’m really happy and excited for all our fans to hear the record.”
Musicians featured on the new album include RoC’s Brett Wilson: Guitar/Vocals; Tal Pearson: Keyboards/Melodica; Andrew Riordan: Sax, Harmony Vocals, Drum Programming, Production,
Key, & Melodica; Chris Regan: Bass/Sticky Guitar; Alex Brander: Drums/Percussion. And includes special guests: Trumpet: Andy Geib (Slightly Stoopid); Trombone: Billy Kottage (toured in live band & recorded with The Interrupters, Reel Big Fish, Goldfinger); Guitar: Mihali (Twiddle) on Arabia; Vocals: Hayley Jane on Seven Nation Army (White Stripes); Vocals: Mighty Mystic on Light it Up; Saxophone Solo: Daniel ‘DELA’ Delacruz (Slightly Stoopid) on Soulshine; Vocals:Jesse Wagner (The Aggrolites) on Soulshine; Hammond Organ: Paul Wolstencroft (Slightly Stoopid) on Soulshine; Percussion: Nick Asta (The Elovaters) on Soulshine. The new album was mixed and mastered by longtime collaborator, friend and RoC live front of house engineer - Pete “Boardz” Peloquin (Gov’t Mule, Seether, Ani Difranco, Oasis) of Boardz House Productions based in the band’s hometown of Brookline, NH.
The release of the new album will be celebrated on Friday, September 17th at Bernie's Beach Bar in Hampton Beach, NH and the news of three New England Music Award nominations! RoC is beyond excited to get back on the road and in front of their fans after a year of virtual shows and lots of social media connections -- so many that RoC landed on Pollstar’s 2020 Live Stream Year End Chart at #33. At shows audiences can expect to hear RoC perform fan favorites, including songs from the #1 Reggae Billboard and Relix/Jambands.com radio charting albums “Grateful Dub: A Reggae-Infused Tribute to the Grateful Dead” and “Livin Free”, as well as choice selections off their upcoming album “Dub Free or Die Vol. 1!” Catch the full tour and purchase tickets HERE.
The new album is out now on all digital platforms & CD and on limited edition vinyl early 2022. Stream & download HERE.
ROOTS OF CREATION
• 11/10/21: Boston, MA | The Paradise Rock Club
Grateful Dub + Teton Gravity Research: Stoke the Fire (Movie Premiere)
• 11/18/21: Rutland, VT | Paramount Theatre w/ Badfish
• 4/7/22-4/10/22: Ventura, CA | Skull & Roses Festival @ Ventura County Fair
BRETT WILSON
• 9/30/21: Webster, MA | Indian Ranch w/ Ziggy Marley
• 10/8/21, 10/15/21, 10/22/21: Hudson, NH | '"Island Fridays" @ Luk's. FREE
• 10/16/21: Portland, ME | Thirsty Pig. 1 Original set. 1 Grateful Dub set
• 11/21/21: Paso Robles, CA | KILOFEST 2021 @ Kilokilo Brewing
w/ Fortunate Youth, KBong (of Stick Figure), Kaleo Wassman (of Pepper), Katastro & Artikal Sound System.
