Transform I

When an album opens with the sound of wispy saxophones, flutes, and Nyabinghi drums prominent in the mix, you've got to figure that you're in for some heavyweight Rasta philosophizing, and you just hope that it won't come at the expense of awesome basslines and catchy melodies. Then when you notice that the muttered philosophizing you're hearing over those percolating drums is being spoken in Portuguese, you may conclude that you've fallen through the rabbit hole into a different brand of reggae experience altogether. Like many non-Jamaican reggae outfits, Dubkasm are fiercely loyal to the old-school reggae verities: one-drop rhythms played with an elephantine slowness; dub effects that are sometimes almost a caricature of '70s roots reggae; and intense and earnest lyrics about love, justice, and spiritual devotion. But they are also willing to toast and sing in Portuguese as well as English (note the punningly titled "Transformai"), to bring a hint of early dancehall digital flavor to their sound ("City Walls"), and to incorporate traditional Brazilian instruments into the mix (as on the surprisingly successful "Moses"). A variety of guest singers and chatters bring with them an equally wide range of vocal ability; the DJs tend to do better than the singers, several of whom are painfully flat. But the bittersweet horn arrangements, the melancholy melodica cuts, and the rich, chocolatey dub mixes make just about every track a winner, even when subpar vocals threaten to distract.