Yellow Umbrella – Flight No. 20-8-3

This album starts off with a track that will sound familiar to those of you that have the Forward March compilation. That song of course is “Rise and Fall” and it is a very well done modern reggae song. “Rise and Fall” has a steady beat, catchy lyrics and the almost creepy sound of a synthesizer in the background. Following that the band dives right in to a horn heavy cover of “Hawaii 5-0” that sounds as though it belongs on a third wave compilation disc rather than a German reggae band’s album. The experimentation with different styles of music doesn’t end there. Although the band never strays to far from the reggae sound, they do find some interesting things to mix in with it. “Greencard” is an excellent example of this as it starts off with an almost two-tone sound and then takes on an Indian flavor. This sound is hard for me to describe, but you’ll know what I’m talking about when you hear it. The appropriately named “Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay!!!!” has a latin-ska sound to it and seems to be more fit for salsa dancing than skanking. This clearly shows that the band is willing to defy the mold of a ska-reggae band and experiment with various sounds. Moving on to the second half of the disc, “A Woman Like You” is a fun little song while “Sit and Pray” has a serious sound to it. I wish I knew what they were saying. The only part that I can make out is the chorus and, no lyric sheet was provided to help me out in that matter. Yellow Umbrella finishes this album strong with “Falling to Pieces”. Before, I said that the band never strays to far from their reggae sound, well this track is the exception. “Falling to Pieces” is a slow heart felt song that sounds like it should have been on the Top Gun soundtrack All in all, this is a solid, well-rounded album, released by a band that is not afraid to take chances. If you’re looking for cookie-cutter reggae, this is not the album for you. However, if you’re looking for a mix of new and traditional sounds, then this album is definitely worth checking out. Rating: 8 Back to CD reviews