A few weeks ago I got into an underground reggae artist whose songs I've been listening to over and over, and about a week after I first hear his music I find out that he's from right over there in Duxbury.
A reggae artist who goes by the name of Stick Figure dropped a new album on August 3rd that comes with authentic and original roots reggae blended with influences by southern California dub, and this is coming from right here in southeastern Massachusetts. Stick Figure creates a unique reggae sound in a small town on the east coast, and does this while displaying amazing musical talent: Scott Woodruff writes, records, and produces all of his songs, playing each instrument separately and layering the tracks on top of each other.
There have been multiple major artists that mix reggae, rock, and dub from the coast of California, like Sublime, and others from closer to the east coast like Slightly Stoopid, but Stick Figure manages to stand out and maintain a completely unique sound. His style is similar to Slightly Stoopid, with more of a relaxed vibe, the songs consisting of original, upbeat rhythms and strong, positive lyrics. An example is one of the most original reggae rhythms to come out in a while in the first minute of the song "Vibes Alive," the opening track on his third album released in 2009 titled "Smoke Stack," where he sings, "Another generation, keeping the vibes alive." He paid homage to one of his influences in February of this year, producing a dub remix of the song "2am" by Slightly Stoopid, a style that slows the tempo down and focuses on rhythm.
The album released over the summer was Stick Figure's fourth, titled "Reprise Sessions" because it's the first with three new members added to his live band after relocating to southern California. With new musicians on bass, drums, and keys, and Woodruff still on guitar and vocals, the band re-recorded some signature tracks and layed down some new ones. The newly-formed full band adds a more energetic sound in the reprise tracks, and a fresh vibe to new ones while keeping all the original Stick Figure elements. The lyrics on the new songs deal with hardship and keeping a positive outlook, like on "Gone" where Woodruff sings, "Even when your mind is gone/you've got to keep your head on strong," and take a view on society on the song "Youth" where he sings, "An 18-year old boy just jumped off a bridge/and they'll call it another suicide," and repeats "The youth are getting restless" in the chorus.
The band is currently recording its debut album of all-new tracks together, expected to drop this fall.
http://www.stickfiguremusic.com/
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