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Big Audio Dynamite Bringing Old School Bangers!
Do festivals have theme songs? Nailing down one band, let alone one song seems like an impossible task, but for for what it’s worth, (you can add your own nominees in the comments section) I would have to choose Big Audio Dynamite’s mid 80’s banger, “E=Mc2.”
Besides an impossibly upbeat rhythm led by former Clash guitarist, Mick Jones, the song also features the lyrical chanting or “toasting” of Don Letts, the DJ who almost singlehandedly introduced reggae and dub to the UK.
Fuji Rock’s fascination with The Clash is well known (click here) allowing B.A.D. to draw a sizable crowd at the White Stage with many singing along to hits such as “Medicine Show” and “The Bottom Line,” need I mention, “C’mon Every Beatbox.”
The question is, how does this song hold up live? B.A.D. have taken a 20 year break and they face tough competition for festival theme songs. Coldplay will certainly tear at heart strings with “The Scientist” and Wu Lyf’s ”Heavy Pop” is unbeatable when it comes to early afternoon bombast. And need we mention Arctic Monkeys? They seem to make anything sound good.
Still, for my money, its “E=MC2″ because the song was a watershed momement in music, the last great piece of vinyl before a tide of internet downloads, samples, and mash-ups would forever change music. When Jones formed B.A.D. he bravely sought new sounds, diving deep into the music underground and sampling everything from answering machine dialogue to Ennio Morricone’s spaghetti-Western music. B.A.D. was bold, expansive, and geared to arena-sized crowds directly impacting other important releases during this time such s the Beastie Boys on Paul’s Boutique, and De La Soul’s Three Feet High And Rising.
And heck, just looking at these words leads to a flood of music filling the space between your ears.
“Ritual-ideas-relativity
Only building-no people-prophecy
Time slide-place to hide-nudge reality
Foresight-minds wide-magic imagery.”
BAD predated much of what we know now as multiculturalism, mixing music, dreads, politics, and self-affirmation message. Most importantly, the emphasis was always on the groove with dance heavy songs loaded with samples and forever changing the way we listen to music. To prove he’s never lost it, Mick Jones and fellow Clash bassist, Paul Simonon have been performing with Gorillaz, an arena act known for wildly sampling music and even cartoon characters.
Here’s the B.A.D. website and their Myspace
