Bonafide Riddim – Dub Akom Records

Dub Akom’s Bonafide Riddim arrived in 2011 on Akom Records, with distribution through Evidence Music and Zojak listed on platform copies. Dub Akom themselves were already known as a French backing band and production outfit out of Marseille, built around Faby and David, with a catalog that would later include projects like Vitamin, Heartwarming, Way Back, and Full Swing.

Bonafide has the warm, rolling feel of a modern roots juggling: live-band bass and drums, bright guitar skanks, and a sturdy one-drop pulse that leaves room for the singers to work the pocket. It is not a militant throwback; the arrangement feels polished and melodic, with enough lift to carry both conscious lyrics and more reflective tunes.

The strongest voices on the riddim come from a wide cross-section of roots and new-roots artists. Konshens cuts through with “Weak, ” one of the sharper hook records on the set, while Pressure Busspipe opens the album with “Be Conscious, ” setting the spiritual tone early. Natty King’s “Mi Nuh Guilty, ” Lutan Fyah’s “Fight It, ” and Jah Mason’s “Life Is The Greatest” keep the conscious center of gravity in place. Jahnett Tafari’s “Let The Music Play” and Ricardo Clarke’s “Only Got Love” add more melody, while the trio of Bugle, Black Dillinger, and Pu2ma on “Better Days” gives the riddim one of its most collaborative moments.

The full set also includes cuts from I-Lements, Jah Marnyah, Rebellion the Recaller, Sugar Roy and Conrad Crystal, YT, Nefatari, and Anthony John, making Bonafide a good snapshot of where roots reggae was headed in that period: polished, singer-driven, and built for replay.