Rootfire’s Progressive Roots Volume 001

by: Mike Patti | May 1, 2013

Monterey’s 4th Annual California Roots Music & Arts Festival, the highly anticipated Memorial Day weekend celebration will be here and gone before you know it! As thousands embark on the festival grounds, many will leave footprints, and take only memories, but 1000 fans will be able to leave the festival with a quality souvenir vinyl!

Rootfire in partnership with Easy Star Records and the California Roots crew have put together a limited edition vinyl in honor of the festival. Titled Progressive Roots Volume 001, the vinyl compilation features 11 artists playing this year’s California Roots Music & Arts Festival.

[Related: Rootfire Mixtape 003]

With a mission to positively contribute and participate in the progressive roots community, Seth Herman of Rootfire began this project with the admirable goal of sharing music out of love, in a non-competition fashion, inclusive of the scene. “I wanted to connect with management, artists, and fans laterally!”

Currently being pressed in Europe for release at the upcoming festival, Herman started the project with a play-list of over 1000 tracks. Narrowing down the pool of prospective tracks, Herman wanted to keep to a current representation of the artists’ sounds. Finally divulging the details of the effort, Herman explained to The Pier, “there was no real rhyme or reason (when choosing the artist), we just wanted the record to have really great music, not dependent of the billing of the festival.”

In the past, LPs defined scenes, and were instrumental in Reggae… compilations have lost their place in the digital age” explained Easy Star’s Eric Smith, when talking with The Pier about why Easy Star was excited to get involved.

Following the history of Jamaican compilations and efforts such as The Pier’s early compilations, realizing there’s nothing happening like this in the scene right now, Herman set out on this project as a way to introduce fans to new music on the growing market of vinyl.

Mastered by Jocko at More Sound, Progressive Roots Volume 001 contains some real musical gems and even a couple tracks from bands that aren’t directly featured on the bill, but who stand out in their own right, such as Dub Trio and New Kingston.

This is a project that artists, management, fans and The Pier are very excited to see come to fruition. Be sure to pick up Progressive Roots Volume 001 at the beginning of the Festival!

Track List:
Side A
1.) Pon Da Horizon – Slightly Stoopid
2.) On The Road Again – Katchafire
3.) Sensi Nation – Natural Vibrations
4.) Vices – Tomorrows Bad Seeds
5.) Another Way – Kings & Comrades

Side B
1.) Golden Hour – Stick Figure
2.) Love Is Strong – The Green
3.) Drive By Dub – Dub Trio
4.) La La La – New Kingston
5.) Above It All – Stranger
6.) Higher Love – Three Legged Fox

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