Exclusive: All about Israel Vibration's South America tour in October! Check it out!

Israel Vibration, one of the greatest names in world Reggae, was once again in South America, more precisely in Brazil and Argentina. Accompanied by the legendary Roots Radics, Skelly and Wiss used the occasion to launch the new album "Stamina", as well as the DVD recorded live in Brazil in 2006, which should soon be in stores. Surforeggae followed everything up close, with Rafael, a member of the Team, being one of those responsible for the tour taking place. In this coverage you will be able to see exclusive photos from Israel Vibration’s shows, as well as unpublished backstage and travel images, in addition to videos.

THE START OF THE TOUR

Despite several problems and difficulties caused by complications in obtaining work visas (which led to the postponement or cancellation of some dates), the group arrived in Brazil, more precisely in Rio de Janeiro, on Wednesday, October 17. Since the members live in different places, such as the USA and Jamaica, they arrived little by little at different times at Galeão Airport.

THE FIRST SHOW

This time Roots Radics had the presence of the band’s original drummer, one of Jamaica’s greatest legends - Lyncoln "Style" Scott. The maestro, Flabba Holt (bass), was leading the band from the soundcheck at Circo Voador, a renowned concert venue in Rio de Janeiro (see video below) and was already choosing some of the songs that would be played later that night. An interesting fact is that the band does not prepare a setlist for the show; in other words, they feel the moment and play the songs they consider most suitable for it. Concerned with the taste of the audience in each city, at every show Flabba asked which tracks people preferred, always performing all those reported by me based on research carried out among people. Formed by Errol "Flabba" Holt Carter (bass), Lyncoln "Style" Scott (drums), Errol Moore (guitar) and Horace James (keyboards), Roots Radics gave a demonstration right in the first show of what they had come for. Click here and watch Israel Vibration at soundcheck with "Ball of Fire". Everything was ready for the show, everyone already in the dressing room prepared to make the first performance of the tour, and we were only waiting for Wiss (vocal), who would arrive around 21:30 at Galeão airport. But then we received the news from the person responsible who was at the airport waiting for the singer: "Wiss missed the SP-RJ connection because of the air chaos and was being sent by the airline to a hotel at that moment". There was no way around it... I had to tell the band about what had happened, and at that moment Skelly gave a forced smile, hid under his jacket and let out a loud "Blood Clot" (a very common swear word among Jamaicans). At the same time, Flabba, the bandleader, got up and addressed everyone, saying "It’s not the first time, so let’s kick it! We must do a wicked show!" (It is not the first time this has happened, so let’s smash it! We have to do a great show". Because of this, Skelly performed a show full of songs he had not sung for a long time, such as "What’s the use" and "Brother’s Keeper", keeping the Rio audience vibrating the whole time (despite the naturally strange absence of the other key member of the vocal duo).

THE DAY OF SUSPENSE

On the second day of the tour, everyone left very early for Porto Alegre, where there would be a show at Opinião, the place chosen to host the recording of the group’s DVD in Brazil in 2006. You may be wondering why the title is "Day of Suspense", so let us explain: once again the air chaos in which our country finds itself almost left Wiss out of the second show. The singer, who was supposed to arrive in the early afternoon in the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, had his flight delayed, but managed to arrive in time for the performance (although he had no time to rest). Regarding the episode that happened the previous night, Flabba told a similar story, and one that even became funny, in which he himself could not get to a show in Europe, and guitarist Ronald Butler had to take over the bass while Errol Moore (guitarist) had to play drums. The funny part of the story is precisely the others telling that Moore played drums and sweated more than an athlete (a joke in the sense that Moore is several kilos overweight and cannot keep up with the rhythm of the instrument). The Porto Alegre audience put on a show on top of the show. Opinião had a very good crowd, who sang almost all the songs and vibrated with the performance of Skelly, Wiss, Kim & Bunny (backing vocals) and Roots Radics. Highlights included songs from the new album, such as "Back Staba", "Natty Dread", "Gully Bank" and "Far Beyond".

EXPRESSO SÃO PAULO

The third and last show of the tour in Brazil would take place at Expresso Brasil in São Paulo - a venue that has been hosting most International Reggae shows in the largest Brazilian city. Since not everything is a bed of roses, the night before, those responsible for the hotel where the band would stay called saying they could not maintain the reservation. And we can say it was not at all easy to find another one, because of the F1 that was about to happen that same weekend. Small problems aside because of the rush to find a hotel, the São Paulo show was very good, with Expresso Brasil receiving a sizable audience, considering the fact that the show was closed at the last minute, meeting the requests of the São Paulo public. Once again the show was very vibrant, featuring as special guest Tales "Lion Farmer" from Leões de Israel, who participated by playing lead guitar on some songs.

NEXT STOP: ARGENTINA

Mission accomplished in Brazil, we all headed to Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, where 3 performances were scheduled, plus 3 others in the cities of Córdoba, Rosário and Mar del Plata. The first show in the country took place at Clube Niceto, one of the main concert venues when it comes to International Reggae Events. The Argentine audience seemed "hungry" when the subject was Israel Vibration & Roots Radics! It was truly impressive for all of us (musicians and team) how the Argentines behaved at the shows, especially during tracks like "Rockfort Rock", "Pay the piper", "Get up and go", "Jericho" and "Jailhouse Rocking". It was a true sea of people jumping, shouting, singing as if they had never seen the band before! In this sense the Brazilian audience lagged well behind... except for Porto Alegre, which put on a show as already mentioned. The shows in Argentina were sold out, all featuring Nonpalidece as the opening band (they also did the 3 shows in Brazil). Highlights go to the Mar del Plata show, where the Argentine audience managed to move everyone with its vibration, and also to the last show of the tour - at Auditório del Sur in Buenos Aires, where Skelly and Wiss invited Nonpalidece’s horn trio to play Cool & Calm and the band’s vocalist to sing "La misma cancíon" (Same Song).

THE END OF THE TOUR

The tour ended in the best possible mood, with all shows carried out in the best way, with maximum dedication from the musicians and the team that accompanied them. Skelly, Wiss, Kim, Bunny and Horace left on the morning of October 28, departing on a long journey that would leave Buenos Aires and pass through São Paulo, Miami, among other cities. The others (who live in Jamaica) would take the flight later that night to their homes. Without a doubt, it was an unforgettable experience to spend a few days with some of the greatest legends of Reggae, as well as being able to have highly interesting conversations about the movement in Jamaica, relive good memories from the past and learn about the plans the group has laid out for the future. Long live Israel Vibration!

EVENT IMAGES

 Click here and see some photos from the tour.

MULTIMEDIA

Click here and watch Israel Vibration with the video "Hard Road".