written by Chris Familton

Dub and electronica have been big exports for New Zealand in the past 15 years, mainly through the efforts of Fat Freddy’s Drop, Salmonella Dub, and Black Seeds to name just a few. Sola Rosa have been operating for a decade now and with 6 albums under his belt a trip to play live in Sydney was well overdue.

Local Bondi crew The Versionaries did a great job getting the crowd warmed up with their dub, lovers rock and drum n bass styles. Singer Georgie Fisher showed what a killer voice she possesses with its swinging melodic style that has just enough grit behind to match the dub heavy riddims. The inclusion of guitar didn’t always work, especially the heavier Santana rock elements but it shows they aren’t prepared to stick to the standard electronic dub formula.

Sola Rosa attracted a good sized crowd for a band that has had limited release and airplay in these parts. They eased the punters into their world with a easy groove that bordered on acid jazz before they began to slowly wind up the tempo and the celebratory vibe of their music. Sola Rosa were originally a downbeat electronic outfit, primarily the solo work of Andrew Spraggon. In 2010 they are a much more varied proposition, incorporating funk, soul, hip hop, latin and dub influences. There was also a strong lounge music flavour to much of what they play with some tasty jazz guitar and exceptional bass playing.

Spikey Tee and the super sassy Iva Lamkum shared vocal duties with Lamkum bringing the RnB funk with a playful sense of humour and a mature and rich voice. Tee sounded great on tracks like Badman and Love Alone, mixing up ragga and soul styles. One of Sola Rosa’s greatest assets was to keep up the groove throughout the set with very few lulls – something that the combination of vocalists played a big part in. The only downside to that was the haze factor with songs blending a little much at times. Some heavier beats and more sparse and minimal moments would have added greater depth to their range of sound.

Sola Rosa must have been heartened by the good turnout and hopefully that will spur them on to get back here soon to spread their music to a deservedly wider audience.

this review first appeared in Drum Media