The Pad Presents… DUB PISTOLS + KUENTA I TAMBU + EASYDREAD – Friday 18th March – Bedford Esquires

THE PAD PRESENTS
http://www.thepadpresents.com

DUB PISTOLS + very special guests KUENTA I TAMBU + Easydread

They’re back! Although they’ve never really been away. Barry Ashworth’s evergreen bunch of dubwise vagabonds have been rocking practically every festival in existence all summer, and yet have still found time to squeeze out a new album — their sixth. And it’s another corker.

‘The Return Of The Pistoleros’ makes them sound like a Latin prison gang, extras in a spaghetti western, a marauding mob of Tequila-swigging mobsters, or a drug cartel. Some of which have a grain of truth to them. Joking aside, though, it’s been a long road to get to where they are — one of the most popular and best-loved acts on the circuit — but it’s testimony to their perseverance and staying power that their popularity still keeps increasing.

The Dubs have been dubbed ‘The Pistoleros’ in recent times by their army of fans — so it seemed only natural to adopt the tag for their latest album on Rob Da Bank’s Sunday Best imprint. El Pistolero is also the nickname of Uruguay talisman Luiz Suarez, who knocked England out of the 2014 World Cup. But as Barry is a Liverpool fan, he’s happy to still have this association. Just.

The Dub Pistols coalesced in the mid-’90s and initially surfed the big beat wave along with acts like the Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim. They had some minor chart hits like ‘Cyclone’ and ‘There’s Gonna Be A Riot’ on Concrete Records, remixed the likes of Moby and Limp Bizkit, and made dramatic inroads into America. Their debut album in 1998, ‘Point Blank’, cemented their position as party-rockers extraordinaire, and by the time it came to their second album around the Millennium — ‘Six Million Ways To Live’, with guest vocals by reggae great Horace Andy and lead singer of The Specials, Terry Hall — they were more concerned with some of the world’s problems.
The album was due to come out just before September 11th 2001 — the date of the Twin Towers terrorist attack in New York — and so had to be postponed. It was the start of the now-familiar Dub Pistols self-deprecating mantra: what could possibly go wrong?

As the noughties progressed, they signed to Sunday Best and went a bit more poppy for ‘Speakers & Tweeters’, which included cover versions of ‘Rapture’ by Blondie, ‘Peaches’ by The Stranglers and ‘Gangsters’ by The Specials – a track they had been making their own live. After guesting on their second album with ‘Problem Is’, estranged Specials singer Terry Hall started singing live with them, and the warm reaction he received from music fans was instrumental in him agreeing to reform his infamous 2-Tone band a few years later.
Next Dubs album ‘Rum & Coke’, so named after some infamous recording sessions in Barbados, introduced more guest vocalists such as former Freak Power man Ashley Slater and Beats International gal Lindy Layton, and with last long-player ‘Worshipping The Dollar’ in 2012 they consolidated their position as one of the foremost festival-rockers in Europe.

Special guests are Kuenta i Tambu who return to esquires with anperformance inspired by traditional Afro Caribbean music from Curacao and European dance, Kuenta i Tambu (also known as KiT) has created a brand new sound!
They cleverly found a balance between electronic sound samples, singing and chanting and the infectious rhythms played by ritual tambu drums.
Some call it Global Bass, others prefer labeling it Tambutronic but one thing is for …sure: it’s a wild and colorful explosion of energy, and always seems to set off some serious movements on the dancefloor!Kuenta i Tambu translates to ‘Stories and Drums’ from Papiamentu, which is the language spoken on the islands of Curacao, Aruba and Bonaire (Dutch Antilles). The group is based in Amsterdam and was formed in 2005 after a series of educational projects at schools and theaters to introduce the music and culture of Curacao to children in the Netherlands.
During this period the first songs were written, establishing the sound and identity of the group which nowadays is known for its high energy shows, with a great deal of humoristic highlights, hypnotizing beats and dazzling percussive interplay between band members.Live, Kuenta i Tambu are a non-stop Carnival, a riot of beats and rhythms that take the audience deep into the Caribbean. Above all, though, it’s obvious that the musicians enjoy playing the music and the live percussion thunders through the air. “We have fun,” says Calister, “and that’s the key.” Tambutronic: where Curaçao’s past dances with its future and takes on the

First up we have the excellent Easydread, an 8 piece Conscious-Rock-Reggae band from Luton

Originally formed in 2011 under the name (Ting & Ra & The Iries) they supported names such as Zion Train, Dreadzone & The Toasters to name a few, as well as playing festivals the likes of Alchemy Festival in Lincoln and Solfest in Cumbria, always to a great response, In early 2013 they went through a member shake up loosing a co-founding member of the band and decided a fresh name was needed…… and so it was easydread was born. Since the rebranding, easydread have continued taking bookings and playing festivals like One Love Reggae Festival, The Bulldog Bash, Skalloween and once again being booked for Alchemy Festival, as well as supporting Kuenta I Tambu and Gentleman’s Dub Club.

Easydread combine sounds drawn from a wide range of influences, from punk to rap, soul to ska.

As they seamlessly blend powerful political imagery with sweet harmonies and heavy grooves easydread will get you thinking as well as skanking.
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Tickets £13+ bf available from …
http://www.seetickets.com/event/dub-pistols-guests/bedford-esquires/928065

Physical Tickets are available for £13 from …
Esquires Bar
Boutique Planet
Marios Hair Design

Doors: 8pm
14+, under 16s to be accompanied by an adult