Panda Bear & Sonic Boom Enlist Adrian Sherwood for "Reset in Dub"

Panda Bear & Sonic Boom, the duo of Noah Lennox and Peter Kember, will release Reset in Dub, a dub version of their acclaimed 2022 LP Reset, featuring reworkings of all nine tracks by the legendary British dub producer Adrian Sherwood, on August 18 digitally and December 8 on vinyl via Domino. Sherwood created his version of Reset at his On-U Sound Studios with a crew that included such storied musicians as Doug Wimbish and Skip McDonald of the Sugarhill Gang and Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, as well as Prisoner, Alex White, Horseman, Mark Bandola, “Crucial” Tony, Ras Badthings, Ivan “Celloman” Hussey, and Mathew Smythe. “One of the primary influences on Reset was Jamaican rocksteady and it seemed like an interesting idea to explore taking it back to that sort of tropical root,” says Kember.

“I like big empty spaces; I like malls when there’s no one there and the beach in the wintertime – visually it’s simple and uncluttered and the noise of the surf drowns out everything else, so I suppose it’s no surprise I’ve always liked the sound of dub,” says Lennox, “and though some stuff bears its mark more than others I’d wager you can find residues of it in everything I’ve done. As a fan of Adrian’s I was excited when Pete suggested we ask him to do some dubs of Reset tracks, but as they started to come through it was clear what he was working on was much more than a dub. Reset in Dub feels like the thing filtered through a prism and it recontextualizes the OG.”

“This is a complete reset of Reset from myself and the On-U Sound crew,” says Sherwood. “Being a fan of Animal Collective and Spacemen 3, when it was suggested we do this together I loved the idea and relished the challenge. We talked about influences, old records, mixing techniques and made a plan, which was to keep all the elements of trippy fun, but with added menace, groove and an ultra active mix for the ‘heads.’ Very happy and proud of the result.”

Panda Bear & Sonic Boom share a first taste of the record today alongside its announcement; “Whirlpool Dub” comes via a visualizer that is an excerpt from the duo’s live show. The original 3d characters concept is by Sonic Boom and Mathew Grommetl; live processing and special effects are by Pedro Rompante.

Sonic Boom on Reset in Dub:

“Sitting around one evening at Noah’s eating Portuguese barbecue chicken, drinking the cheap tasty Tejo wine and listening to old Tubby dubs bounce around the walls, we started talking over the idea of a Reset dub version of our 2022 LP. One of the primary influences on Reset was Jamaican rocksteady and it seemed like an interesting idea to explore taking it back to that sort of tropical root.”

“But who to dub it? That was the question. Who could do it justice and feed in the sort of shimmering caverns that we dreamed of?”

“I remembered about 15 years ago playing a festival in the east of London and there not being much I cared to hang around and see, except The Slits. I went and stood at the back near the sound desk at the outside stage on which they were performing and duly the Slits started up their show. Immediately, I could tell this was something a little different… Shuddering staccatos of frying echos and kill switch edits lifting and clouding into the afternoon. I looked back at the sound desk to see what was the source of this amazing rhythmscape. “That’s Adrian Sherwood,” my friend said. I made a mental note to go give him my thanks afterwards.”

“So, musing on that balmy Lisbon night, when Noah said “who could we ask,” my memories of that long lost afternoon came flooding back and I suggested Adrian. Next stop, the On-U Sound website to whistle off a howdy and a handshake to Adrian.”

“There was one other gig that stands out to me after hundreds of gigs that I’ve seen. When I was 17, my buddy Simon from the local record store told me he had freebies for Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. They were riding the number one spot with “The Message.” I wasn’t sold initially to be honest, but when my friends pointed out I had nothing better to do, I went. I don’t know what I expected, but what I got was my mind blown. The show was stunning. The artistry, the music, the dancing and stage moves. The whole thing opened up a whole new part of my mind. I loved it and so began my introduction to the Sugar Hill Records label. So when Adrian’s list of musicians for Reset in Dub came through and I saw the whole list of awesome contributors, we were excited to see it including Doug Wimbish and Skip McDonald – two members, amongst many other accolades, of the Sugar Hill Records house band, alumni of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and The Sugarhill Gang.”

“We couldn’t have been happier. I personally don’t believe in bucket lists, but if I did, we just filled it way, way up.”

“So here it is.”

Panda Bear x Sonic Boom x Adrian Sherwood

PANDA BEAR & SONIC BOOM ON TOUR:

July 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Bellwether ^

July 15 – Napa, CA @ Golden States

July 16 – Seattle, WA @ Neptune Theater ^

July 18 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club *

July 19 – Washington, DC @ 930 Club *

July 21 – Queens, NY @ Knockdown Center *

July 22 – Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Festival

July 28 – Brno, Czech Republic @ Pop Messe