One Sharp Mind

Never Give Up

Ask the average person on the street what comes to mind when they hear the word ‘reggae’ and they’ll quickly conjure up an image of the honorable Bob Marley lighting up a massive spliff. Marley was the quintessential reggae musician indeed – but where are the reggae bands that are bringing us the modern reggae vibes that are speaking to todays issues? Let us introduce you to One Sharp Mind!

Based out of the Sacramento area in the Golden State, One Sharp Mind has been bringing their blend of energetic, modern reggae to gigs and parties for the past four years. They have continued to build upon their success and momentum by releasing their latest musical offering, ‘Never Give Up’!

This six-strong band presents a collection of nine tracks that will get the party started and even get the most hesitant dancers up out of their seats. One Sharp Mind is not your average reggae band that gets booked to knock out all the classics that everybody knows – this is real musicianship expressed through original, well crafted songs that not only speak about the world in the 21st century but are backed up by tight musicians who know how to deliver.

The opening track ‘Change the World’ immediately gets your head nodding along with some sweet grooves before smooth vocals come in and take you away to a better place. Talk of revolution and changing the world is popular in reggae music for sure, but this track shows how current and cutting edge it is by introducing vocal samples of Donald Trump, and others, making comments about Muslims and immigrants that were only made in very recent history.

What follows next is a dreamy, reggae cover of a timeless classic that everybody knows and loves. It’s the Marvin Gaye classic ‘Let’s Get It On’ but not as we know it. This alternate take on the slow dance favourite is fantastic and also introduces the fact that One Sharp Mind is not a one man show but a male/female powerhouse that split the vocal duties between them.

‘In The Waves’ is a key song to this album as it contains not only this original recording but also two separate remixes with each version bringing something different yet equally delightful. The female vocals on this are like pure, liquid honey – they are so sweet and keep you wanting more!!

As the album progresses we keep learning more about the musical muscles that One Sharp Mind have no problem in flexing – as each track passes we hear more than just reggae. ‘Out of Beer’ has a blatant rock intro while ‘Not Enough Time’ starts out as classic reggae but ends with multiple guitar riffs and licks layered on top of each other not unlike something off a MeatLoaf album.

With so many great songs it’s hard to pick a favourite but ‘The Shift’ really bought it home to us. Upbeat! Happy! Feel good… with memorable chorus! This is what reggae is all about – and what this entire album is all about. It’s clear to us that these guys are good… Irie good!