Hopeless B Riddim – Digital-B Records

Digital-B’s Hopeless B Riddim lands in that sturdy, late-era Bobby Digital lane where the arrangements stay lean and the songwriters do the heavy lifting. Released in November 2015, the four-song set pairs Fay-Ann Lyons’ “Rain Cry” with Iba Mahr’s smooth “So Fine, ” Imar Shephard’s earnest “Real Man, ” and Lutan Fyah’s breezy “Hold A Vibes, ” with the latter two feeling like the sharpest cuts on the riddim. It’s a compact line-up, but that’s part of the charm: no excess, just a clean reggae framework that lets each voice sit right in the pocket. Coming after years of Digital-B riddims that kept one foot in roots and the other in contemporary dancehall, this one sits comfortably in the label’s catalogue as a modest but well-judged showcase for conscious singers.