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Album reviews Music

Tarrus Riley

Rating: NNNN


Recent coverage of the Jamaican music scene might have you believing the island’s output is limited to lyrically explicit dancehall. In actuality, a number of artists like Omar “Tarrus” Riley are working to create positive, uplifting reggae.

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On his third album, Bronx-born Riley lays out 18 diverse tracks that include a cautionary tale of adultery (S-Craving) and a great rendition of Michael Jackson’s Human Nature. His relaxed, buttery voice evokes the early 90s, and he draws air horn and ska-derived brass samples and sleepy guitar riffs from all eras of Jamaican music. There’s even a Demarco appearance on Herbs Promotion.

Riley comfortably takes on contemporary issues like gang violence while maintaining his conservative religious and cultural values.

A fresh take on a classic sound.

Top track: S-Craving

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