Album Review of New Wave by Fyakin.

“The Most High calls on you when you are young, ‘cause you are strong,” said Fyakin. Over the years Fyakin found himself surrounded by other cultural icons in the industry, such as I Wayne. Fyakin, a devout Rastafarian, humbly credits I Wayne for imparting valuable words of wisdom that helped keep him on the righteous path and produce conscious music instead of slackness. “I Wayne told me to sing life music, culture music, no gun tunes,” said Fyakin.  

(Excerpt from Fyakin’s biography.)

Having spent a few days immersed in this album “New Wave” by Fyakin, it is obvious that he took the advice from I-Wayne to heart. This album goes back to the roots of reggae and you can tell that’s where his heart is.

  The album opens with a track called “Africa Awaits”. This song is a song about repatriation, which is a theme that occurs several times throughout the album. The song also has a dig at the government with lyrics like “They feed the multitude with plastic food, and then refuse to speak the truth. So now the youths them revolute.”

  “Children Of Fari ft Kabaka Pyramid”  opens with the most beautiful percussion and voice which leads into lyrics about being the children of Selassie I and following in His footsteps. The song ends with a sweet bassline. I’ve had this track on repeat several times since I received the album and it’s a definite favorite with me. 

  The following track is “Concrete Jungle”. This song talks about how there is no escaping the violence of the inner cities and that the politicians don’t care  There’s the violence of the police, the violence of the youth and even “The tiny tot, them a carry Glock”, and there’s nowhere to run to get away from it. This is a powerful song of despair about the way things are and no-one seems to care “Not even a little bit.”

  As a lover of “old school” DJ style reggae, the next track “Fari Style” is a winner with me. Fyakin shows his lyrical prowess with this song and as he says “The style can’t spoil”.

  A prerequisite of a reggae album is a ganja song and this album is no exception, it has 3 ganja songs. The first ganja track, “Green”,  is about the hunt for good ganja.

  “I & I Story Master” is the next track. This is Fyakin’s story in a rub-a-dub style but in the words of Fyakin he’ll “Rock it in a new stylee” and put a “fire in your ear”.

  Next up is “I Got To Roll”, the second ganja song. This one promotes the health benefits of marijuana.

  “Irie” is a song about the joy of dancing to the roots rock reggae music vibe. “All I want to do is skank my feet. Rocking to the roots rock reggae beat”. This track makes you want to get up and dance. It takes me back to the “Big people dances” back in the day.

  “Lyrical Don” is one of the 3 singles released from this album and was widely acclaimed in the industry. It has a very catchy, marching type riddim and with his scintillating lyrics, Fyakin can definitely claim the title “Lyrical Don”.

  Following this comes a complete change with “Only For You”, a Lovers Rock style song that’s sure to be a hit with the Lovers Rock fans. This track highlights Fyakin’s vocal ability on top of a wicked riddim. I really liked this song except for the very cringe-worthy line “You’re gonna be my bo”.  I guess it’s a generational thing. 

  The third ganja song and another of the tracks released as a single is “Steamin”.  “Steamin” talks about how you can get the high from marijuana without the harmful effects that you would get from the hard drugs like cocaine etc. It tells how people put down ganja but so many are hooked on tobacco, then goes on to tell how ganja helps with cancer and strokes. All this set to an infectious riddim.

  “Protection” is a prayer for protection from the pitfalls and distractions along the journey of life. It starts with a spoken prayer and is another song that shows the varied vocal range of Fyakin.

  A completely different vibe comes from “Sauci Parilla Flow”. This track has a latin/reggae fusion vibe with some interesting percussion leading through it.

  “Smiling ft Oriel” is the final track on the album. On this track, Fyakin and Oriel sing that whatever struggles life throws at them, they keep on smiling, as Jah is alongside them on their journey. This collaboration blends the voices or two rising artists that I’m sure we will hear much more of.

“New Wave” by Fyakin is definitely an album to add to your collection if you are a fan of roots reggae. Beautiful vocals, conscious lyrics, good riddims and very well produced. It’s an album that Fyakin can be proud of.