Dactah Chando is a global cityzen

Two years ago I discovered Canarian reggae artist Dactah Chando. He started his career back in 2009 and dropped his fifth album in 2016. I had never heard of him, but the album Ansestral caught my ears with its warm vibes and uplifting spirit.

Recently he dropped his sixth album Global Cityzen, an eleven track set, including two dub workouts courtesy of German producer and mixing engineer Umberto Echo, who together with Dactah Chando has produced the album.

Global Cityzen is much like its predecessor and Dactah Chando again effortlessly flows between Spanish and English. He is backed by Gentleman’s current live band The Evolution and they provide solid and powerful rhythms, including live horns and harmonica.

Global Cityzen is another pleasant set, and when the album dropped I knew what to expect.

Advertisement

Positive vibes on Dactah Chando’s Ansestral

I often think that I have a rather good view of the current European scene, but time after time I find solid albums from artists that I’ve never heard of, even though they have been around for several years.

Canarian reggae singer and devoted surfer Dactah Chando is one of those artists. He started his career in 2009 and dropped his debut album two years later. And a few months ago he put out his fourth set Ansestral.

It’s a great album produced and mixed by Umberto Echo with backing vocals provided by no other than German songstress Sara Lugo. Together they have created an album full of positive vibes with an often relaxed atmosphere.

I Chant offers heavy percussion and nyabinghi influences, while Alto Grado has a dub-infused sonic landscape. Vive sounds like a bouncy Augusts “Gussie” Clarke production from the late 80s and on My Yut Dactah Shando gets in a singjay mode.

Another solid and rootsy set from showcasing the thriving European reggae scene.