Dub Is a Weapon vaporizes dub conventions

“VAPORIZED,” Dub Is a Weapon (Harmonized)

Dub music is an offshoot of reggae that led to all manner of studio manipulation of sound, from remixes of disco songs to the advent of the seemingly millions of subgenres in the ever-expanding electronica universe.

The basic method of dub is to record music in bits (often instrument-by-instrument) or strip previously recorded songs down to their bits, and overdubbing, rearranging and/or modifying the pieces into a layered sound. Dub Is a Weapon’s “Vaporized” turns the premise inside-out: The release is primarily a live recording of an assembled band, with only modest overdubbing.

So in a sense, it’s ... back to reggae.

Theramin player/guitarist Dave Hahn leads Dub Is a Weapon through its intriguing experiment, and he and his band replicate the spacey feel of traditional dub as keyboards, guitars and horns float in and out of the mix while the crucial cadence (drums, bass and percussion) remain constant, riding that familiar reggae lilt. The group is successful in that the more-or-less live recording sounds much like piecemeal dub. But there’s nothing else groundbreaking, or particularly stimulating, about the release.

In keeping with dub tradition, “Vaporized” is almost entirely instrumental. And the lone track with vocals, “Forwarding Home” (featuring Rob Symeonn), is actually the most addled and aimless cut in the bunch. The other eight tracks sprawl through relaxed journeys, sometimes to numbing effect (or meditative effect, depending on the listener’s perspective). Differences are minor in the abstract: “Turmoil” feels more sensual, the high-energy percussion of “Asheville” adds a mesmerizing nuance, there’s more lift in the progress of “Persistence,” there’s more spring to “Destiny,” and “Curva Peligrosa” has a subterranean vibe.

But basically, the tracks simply meld into each other for nearly an hour’s worth of background music for stoners.