Reggae meets new wave at Chocolate Church Arts Center | Column
As a child of the ’80s, I was introduced to the Talking Heads at a young age. I remember hearing “Burning Down the House,” on top 40 radio and feeling both dazzled and perplexed by the sound. As I got older, the Talking Heads became one of my all-time favorite groups. If you had told me there was a musician out there combining two things I already love — reggae and the Talking Heads — you would have had my attention immediately.
Mystic Bowie performs with the Talking Dreads. (Courtesy of the Talking Dreads)
That’s essentially what Mystic Bowie does with his band, Talking Dreads. He takes the wonderfully quirky, instantly recognizable music of the Talking Heads and reimagines it through roots reggae, ska and lovers rock. It sounds like an unlikely combination until you hear it. Then it makes perfect sense.
Lucky for you, me, and the rest of the Midcoast, we will all get a chance to catch Talking Dreads at 5 p.m. this Saturday, Aug. 15, at the Levitt Amp Bath Free Waterfront Concert Series. Reggae by the Kennebec River after a day at the beach or outside gardening — what could be better. And the weather is looking sublime!
I remember the first Talking Heads song I heard Mystic Bowie cover. Funny enough, it was his version of “Burning Down the House.” The familiar song is still there, but suddenly it has a completely different pulse. It’s warmer, looser and unmistakably Jamaican, while keeping the energy and eccentricity that made the Talking Heads so much fun in the first place.
But please don’t think this is a gimmicky tribute band. Talking Dreads offers something different: familiar music viewed through another musical tradition.
Bowie has a real connection to the music. Born in Jamaica, he spent nearly 20 years performing with Tom Tom Club, the band founded by Talking Heads members Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz. That history gives Talking Dreads an authenticity that I find especially appealing. Bowie isn’t approaching these songs from a distance. He spent years making music alongside two of the people who helped create that unmistakable Talking Heads sound.
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And reggae turns out to be a surprisingly natural fit. The rhythms invite you to settle in and listen, but they also make you want to groove and move a bit too. It’s sort of the best of both worlds — you can chillax and dance.
For longtime Talking Heads fans, there’s the fun of recognizing songs you know almost by heart and hearing where Bowie takes them. For reggae fans, there’s the pleasure of hearing those songs transformed by rhythms rooted in Jamaica.
And did I mention, this is alongside the Kennebec River as the sun is starting to set on a beautiful Maine day?
I’ve heard “Burning Down the House.” Now I want to hear what Mystic Bowie and Talking Dreads do with the rest of the catalog — preferably with a crowd, a good beat and enough room to dance. This, to me, is summer time with a bow on it.
Matthew Glassman is executive and artistic director of the Chocolate Church Arts Center in Bath.
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