Lee “Scratch” Perry is the Dub Organizer

Lee 'Scratch' Perry is the dub organizer

🔥 “Fiyah! Fiyah, fiyah! Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry is the dub organizer!” That’s the anthem.

Click this link to listen & love on all digital services the new 4/19/23 release from Lee “Scratch” Perry, Subatomic Sound System, & Screechy Dan.

Across the USA & Europe this summer, Subatomic is live with Stephen Marley & Jack Johnson.

August 5 @ Mateel in Redway, CA Subatomic performs a Lee Scratch Perry memorial set.

Hear the new song live with help from the crowds in Hamburg, Cologne, and Amsterdam. Also KEXP had us perform the song in the studio. Check the full session & interview as well…

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Lee Scratch Perry Memorial Shows with Subatomic Sound System + Screechy Dan

Brooklyn, Saturday 11/6, 6:30-10PM, final memorial show! October 9-15 & November 6 in the USA, Lee “Scratch” Perry’s NYC based band, Subatomic Sound System, celebrates his life & music with the first in a series of memorial performances across the USA featuring frequent collaborator, Brooklyn based Jamaican singer Screechy Dan, on the mic.

10/9 AUSTIN TX | @ Flamingo
10/10 SAN ANTONIO TX | @ Paper Tiger
10/12 SAN DIEGO CA | @ Music Box
10/13 LOS ANGELES CA | Dub Club @ Echoplex
10/15 MINNEAPOLIS MN | @ Granada Theater
(Click venue names links for tickets)

11/6 BROOKLYN NY | @ Public Records (plus Addis Pablo, Queen Majesty, and special guests) 6:30-10:00pm. Limited capacity. Advance tickets recommended.

Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System

A musical memorial for a king, Lee Scratch Perry (1936-2021), will be performed by Scratch’s NYC based band Subatomic Sound System celebrating the monumental life of the legendary Jamaican reggae and dub originator who departed this earth one month ago, a stones’ throw from where he was born. Jamaican health restrictions limited the actual funeral on September 23 to only ten people, not even enough for family, so these shows are organized for all the friends and fans unable to attend. Known to many as the eccentric producer and co-writer of some of Bob Marley’s most famous work (like “Sun is Shining”, “Kaya”, “One Drop”) and many more reggae classics, he is revered across music genres for his inspired music production and boundless creativity which includes being the first to use a sample in a song, the first to record a singer chatting (which was Jamaica’s vocal predecessor to rapping), and the first producer to appear as an artist on an album cover.  During the most recent decade, he brought this to the stage with Subatomic Sound System.

Lee “Scratch” Perry, the Super Ape, RIP 1936-2021

Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System at KEXP

UPDATE: Subatomic Sound System + Screechy Dan had a tour scheduled Oct 9-15 in the USA and Nov 6 in Brooklyn. By request, these shows will be musical memorials for Scratch, in light of the demand to celebrate the life of Scratch and the restrictions in Jamaica barring large crowds at the funeral.

Several people have asked about music released by Lee “Scratch” Perry & Subatomic Sound System to play in tributes:

2017’s acclaimed “Super Ape Returns To Conquer” album captures the 40th anniversary of “Super Ape” live tour and features versions of some of Scratch’s biggest productions “Chase the Devil”, “War Ina Babylon”, “Zion’s Blood”, “Dread Lion” and more. Live video of the song “Dread Lion” from Bumbershoot festival

2016 release “Black Ark Vampires” was Scratch’s closing song on almost every show since its release and is Scratch’s explanation for burning down the Black Ark studio in 1983. Live video from KEXP studio session.

2018 “A Me (The Dub Organizer)” was released on Bandcamp exclusively as a promo for the 45th anniversary of “Blackboard Jungle Dub” allbum tour.

Playlist of Releases: Below is a Spotify playlist of Scratch & Subatomic that includes all the above releases plus additional remixes we did in 2007 (some vinyl & some digital as described in this documentary) and second playlist of some of Scratch’s personal favorite productions.

Live videos are compiled in this YouTube playlist of Scratch & Subatomic shows from 2009-2020 primarily in the USA, Canada, & Europe, but the last tours included Mexico and the final band show 2019 was in Dubai and final US festival show was Feb 2020 with Scratch & Emch.

Statement from Emch of Subatomic Sound System: Lee “Scratch” Perry. Boundless creativity and inspiration, the curiosity of a child and the soul of a prophet, unleashed on the earth for the past 85 years 💔 The spirit, the magic, and the soul fire 🔥Super Ape will live on forever. Inspiration is the greatest gift, one which you gave us so freely, unlocking pathways to self-discovery in us and the people you interacted with on a daily basis throughout your life, a creative miracle worker. You changed our lives, our perspective, our way of doing things, our understanding of what was possible. In shock to hear today that this earthly presence has come to an end, closing this decade long chapter of working, traveling, & laughing together. To anyone reading this who has crossed paths on this journey, please share a comment on our IG or Facebook of some time you remember and what it meant to you. It would mean a lot to us in this time. Scratch always said “I conquer death” and those memories and that energy is how death is conquered

Conga player Larry McDonald does an extensive interview about Scratch here.

Live in Brooklyn at Elsewhere for the 45th anniversary of “Blackboard Jungle Dub” tour, the world’s first dub album performed live for the first time. The video was also shot in 3D VR here if you have a headset.

Scratch & Subatomic at Coachella 2013

Zion’s Blood was the opening song for nearly every live show until the late 2017. This is a 360 VR recording from a show in North Carolina. According to Emch “the vibes were great that night but sadly the first row was clogged with press photographers at the start of the show which initially blunted the otherwise vibrant energy of the sold out sweaty room.”

After hearing the rough mix, Scratch requested that the new opening song for shows be changed to the updated version of Dub Organizer titled “A Me” which Emch recorded with Scratch in Jamaica during the sessions for the “Super Ape Returns to Conquer” album in 2017. This led to a discussion about doing 45th anniversary of “Blackboard Jungle Dub” which began in 2018.

Spotify playlist of digital releases from Lee “Scratch” Perry & Subatomic Sound System

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Police in Helicopter – Yaadcore, Jah9, & Subatomic Sound System

Out now! Get both the vocal single and dubstrumental mix on Bandcamp , iTunes or Juno. Stream it on Apple Music, Spotify, or Deezer. Don’t forget to give it a heart and drop it in a playlist! Tag Subatomic, Yaadcore, and Jah9 on social media to let us know you are rocking to the sound. On all digital services everywhere April 9.

Yaadcore & Jah9 together on the mic for the first time on this heavyweight Subatomic Sound System re-lick of the incendiary 1982 John Holt anthem “Police in Helicopter”. Big bass for your speakers in the style of our “Super Ape Returns to Conquer” release with Scratch.

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Happy 84th Birthday! 3-D Virtual Reality Concert “Blackboard Jungle Dub” Tour

ThumbnailLSPfly (112)text Wish Lee Scratch Perry a Happy 84th Birthday today! Here are some presents for you from Scratch & Subatomic: 1) Grab our recent relick of  the “Dub Organizer single by Scratch & Subatomic Sound System on our Bandcamp as a limited time free download released for the “Blackboard Jungle Dub” 45th anniversary album tour.  2) And this will blow your mind: 3-D, 180 degree, 4 camera virtual reality video of Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System “Blackboard Jungle Dub” tour sold out in Brooklyn at Elsewhere. To pan the video, move your cellphone around or click on the screen and drag, and to see it in 3-D immersion, use goggles or a VR headset like Oculus, good headphones and a Subpac! 3) We have some great new playlists on Spotify too for Lee Perry’s Birthday playlist, for COVID19 Quarantine playlist, and for hot new reggae trackcs. Follow those playlists as we will be updating them!

We will follow this video up next week with another VR video from our Brooklyn Industry City show that will feature Screechy Dan singing our new single release “Champion Sound”
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Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System US & Mexico tour Sept 19-29 & Oct 26-31

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Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System US & Mexico tour Sept 19-29 & Oct 26-31, 2019.  Select dates with a * listed below will be “Blackboard Jungle Dub” 45th anniversary album performances. Other US shows will feature a new set of music.  Since this is our first time in Mexico, those shows will also include “Super Ape Returns to Conquer” album sets as well as some “Blackboard Jungle Dub” and more.
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New single “Shaolin Dub” + video & release party Friday Aug 2 at NuBlu in New York City

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New Subatomic Sound System “Shaolin Dub” single drops August 1 on our Subatomic Bandcamp site Release party August 2 in New York City at NuBlu, 151 Ave C (12th street). Get your advance tickets available here. Emch on the dub mix, Troy on the sax, and percussion legend Larry McDonald on congas. Full EP coming August 15. Check the live video below shot by Joey Clay during our tour with Julian Marley and please copy the link here to share the video with your peoples.
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Lee “Scratch” Perry + Subatomic Sound System “Blackboard Jungle Dub” 45th Anniversary Tour

Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System, Emch

photo by John Shore

LEE “SCRATCH” PERRY + SUBATOMIC SOUND SYSTEM
45th ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCES OF “BLACKBOARD JUNGLE DUB” + MORE
1st dub album in history, live for the 1st time!

presented by Dub Champions Festival
in assocation with SubPac (check the contest!) and our media sponsor Large Up.

Upcoming performances Sept 18-27, 2019 in USA & Mexico. Prior dates  Oct 12-31, 2018 and Feb 7-23, 2019 across North America.
For complete tour schedule visit: www.SubatomicSound.com/events  Sign up on our mailing list to hear about new dates being added in the future and receive an exclusive promo tour mixtape.

https://www.facebook.com/PerryScratch | https://www.facebook.com/SubatomicSoundSystem

Grammy winning dub & reggae pioneer Lee “Scratch” Perry celebrates the 45th anniversary of his landmark album “Blackboard Jungle Dub”, the world’s first dub album. Scratch, now 82 years young, will embark on a tour across North America performing his 1973 studio masterpiece live in its entirety for the first time, aided by the technology of NYC’s Subatomic Sound System, his hybrid band of new school electronics and veteran Jamaican musicians from the Black Ark era recordings. For the past 8 years, Subatomic Sound System has been Scratch’s go to band for re-creating the Black Ark sound live on stage. They will also perform music from their album “Super Ape Returns To Conquer” ( http://bit.ly/SS033s ) which topped both reggae and electronic charts in 2018, plus singles like “Black Ark Vampires” (http://bit.ly/BAVss ) and classics from Perry’s work with the likes of Bob Marley, Max Romeo, and many more. Perry’s Blackboard Jungle album includes dub remixes of hit songs he co-wrote with Bob Marley, “Kaya” & “Keep On Movin”, as well as other big tunes from The Wailers and Junior Byles. Kaya turned out to be Marley’s most successful album of his career and celebrated its own anniversary with a massive festival earlier this year.  Keep reading for dates and details…
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New Lee “Scratch” Perry + Subatomic Sound System album & upcoming shows

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MOJO magazine previewed the new Lee “Scratch” Perry + Subatomic Sound System album “Super Ape Returns To Conquer” that we recorded in NYC, Jamaica, in the ocean, and on tour — which is finally dropping at the end of the summer 2017.That’s why we’ve been so quiet on the website! It’s been loud in the studio!  Pre-order the CD and limited edition vinyl from Forced Exposure or Juno UK before it’s gone!  Thanks to everyone who came out to the recent California tour dates and Sierra Nevada World Music Festival performance. Subatomic Sound System will be back east in NYC and Washington DC in late July (check the calendar on your right) for some performances previewing the new album then lookout for a tour October 24-November 5 and some special events around Dub Champions Festival coming in September and October 2017.

Lee “Scratch” Perry & Subatomic Sound System live videos from KEXP

Lee Scratch Perry & Subatomic Sound System at KEXP
Check out the full 40 minute video of Lee “Scratch” Perry & Subatomic Sound System (or edits of the songs Black Ark Vampires, I am a MadmanDread Lion, and Happy Birthday) at the KEXP radio studios in Seattle performing in their unique style juxtaposing live instruments and sound system dub mixing. Scratch & the Subatomic crew with Emch on the mix & melodica, Larry McDonald on percussion, and Troy on sax stopped by during the Dub Champions Festival tour after a sold out Super Ape 40th anniversary album performance in Seattle Sept 17, 2016.
photo by NataWorry

We perform four songs and you can check each song individually below: Our new single Black Ark Vampires, Perry’s classic I am a Madman with an Ethiopian jazz twist, Dread Lion because we are on the 40th anniversary Super Ape album tour, and Lee’s favorite song Happy Birthday dubwise in honor of it also being Scratch’s 80th birthday tour.
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