David Katz: Dub Revolution

White Rabbit, 2026, hardcover, 384 pages, 15.8 x 23.8 cm

The most abstract, playful and confounding of reggae subgenres, dub is a vital component of sound system culture that has wielded disproportionate influence. Emerging as an underground phenomenon in Kingston during the early 1970s, dub was wrought by sonic alchemists such as King Tubby, Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Prince Jammy and Scientist, conjuring musical mutations at the mixing desk. Dub reached other lands through the Jamaican diaspora and as Lloyd 'Bullwackie' Barnes furthered the form in New York, Dennis Bovell, Mad Professor and Adrian Sherwood conjured their own dub masterworks in London, Jah Shaka and his acolytes subsequently helping dub to achieve global reach. Widely adopted by post-punk producers and later a crucial influence on the underground dance music scenes of several continents, dub indelibly changed the techniques and aesthetics of music production with far-reaching effects; it's no exaggeration to say that without dub, there would be no hip-hop or house music.