Scientist Rids the World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires

A sound drops away, but its pattern stays in memory. An echo occupies the gap and seems to alter the size of the room around the rhythm. This dub album invites attention to removal and return, rather than measuring expression by the number of sounds present.

The 1981 Greensleeves release joins distinct kinds of work: Henry “Junjo” Lawes’s production, Roots Radics’ playing and Scientist’s mixing. The label identifies Channel One recordings mixed by Scientist at King Tubby’s. The linked reissue is titled Junjo Presents: The Evil Curse of the Vampires and credits its dub tracks to Roots Radics, followed by twelve vocal and DJ bonus tracks.

Follow an absence

Dub is more than the idea of a song without its singer. Listen for a part that disappears and notice how the remaining instruments change in apparent size. When the missing element returns, your sense of the beat may sharpen even though the underlying movement has continued. Try following the bass on one pass and the drums on another. No effects vocabulary is necessary: the useful question is what your ear keeps waiting for after a sound has gone.

Images without a compulsory plot

The monsters and vampires in the titles encourage imagination, but they do not establish a film soundtrack or a single narrative. Let the sonic space suggest its own images. A sound may move away until only a trace remains, while the rhythmic foundation keeps the passage grounded. Hearing the musicians and the mix as related contributions avoids treating the album as one person playing every instrument. The dramatic action can be the changing relationship between those contributions.

Keep the album boundary audible

On the digital reissue, the first ten dub tracks form the main programme. Pause before the later vocal and DJ selections, then use those additions as another listening context. Do not assume that any two tracks share an underlying rhythm without checking their relationship. The expanded package makes comparison possible, but it does not turn every bonus recording into part of the original album. Returning to the dub section after hearing voices can reveal how a fragment, a gap or a lingering sound carries attention. Repetition provides the stable reference from which those movements become clear.