Last month the four-man reggae group Rebelution released their new triple album “Peace of Mind,” which includes full-length acoustic and dubstep versions. Now the band is taking its feel-good sound on tour across America this spring.
Bassist Marley Williams spoke to The State Press about the album, the band’s dedicated fan base and what’s coming up for Rebelution.
The State Press: Why did the band decide to release a triple album for “Peace of Mind”?
Marley Williams: I think it’s just the time in the music era where you have to always reinvent yourself in many ways. In this case, it’s kind of an original idea. This concept’s different than others. I think that we wanted to give it a shot where people respond to it and appreciate it so far.
SP: What influences did you draw from during the making of the record?
MW: Our influences are really a wide range of music. It’s kind of hard to say that we have some specific ones. Everybody in the band listens to different styles and we kind of bring that to the table — everything from progressive rock artists to reggae to rap and hip hop to even acoustic.
It’s one of those things where it would probably be a list of hundreds and hundreds of people.
SP: How did you go about recording the album with the dubstep and acoustic versions?
MW: It was a little different from the past two albums. Those were kind of more we wrote them and then we just went in the studio and recorded them how we arranged. We had sessions and worked with producers for this album. It really was a cool experience because in the past that’s not something we really had the luxury of doing.
I’m looking forward to the next album because this is going to be a building block for us to keep on producing more music with more of a wide variety of different genres and flavors.
SP: What is your favorite song to play live?
MW: I really like the song “Good Vibes.” It’s really fun to play something that has a bright and happy sound to it, but at the same time the message is not serious.
This song has a really impactful message and strong statements, and to play that in a song with the brightness is a really cool mix. It’s really hard to write lyrics that are deep to a song like that with the feel-good sound and the musical end of it.
SP: Have you noticed any songs becoming fan favorites at your shows?
MW: I think “Sky is the Limit” has always been popular since we played it before we released the album. “So High” has always been popular, and “Comfort Zone” has been getting a lot of good response. So far, so good. People already know all the words to the album. We’re all just kind of blown away. It’s been nonstop great feedback, and we’re just really stoked and happy right now.
SP: How did you guys react to the No. 13 debut of “Peace of Mind” on the Billboard chart?
MW: It’s just one of those things where it’s like living the dream. We all feel like the same people we were when we were playing cover songs in driveways and backyards in our college hometown. We’re all keeping the same attitude but it’s like “Wow, feels like yesterday we were doing this.”
Like I said earlier, we just couldn’t be more thankful and blessed for this situation that we got from people supporting us to the opportunity of meeting each other. Let the good times roll.
SP: What’s in store for Rebelution for the rest of this year?
MW: Right now there are a few possibilities on our table. There’s some international talk. The writing process is kind of a stretched-out thing. We don’t really actually have sessions where we dedicate a week and we just write. It’s kind of something that goes on a song-by-song basis. We don’t really have a set process.
Also there’s the festival season coming up — which we’ve been really pretty cool to be a part of — and we keep continuing to get offers from around the country. It’s going to be, I would say, an international two- or three-week thing or possibly a one-off tour of festivals. Maybe some college performances, too.
Reach the reporter at okhiel@asu.edu.
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