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Relix Premiere: Stream Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad’s New Album In These Times

How did the current the political atmosphere fuel the album’s lyrical themes?

Politics and violence is so scary right now and has been since we have been a band. We started taking playing reggae seriously after September 11. It seemed like something was terribly wrong on so many sides and the only right thing to do was to play music and try to give people a good space to really think about what was happening around them and what people were or WERE NOT saying. Sometimes when you write a song influenced by a particular current event you run the danger of it becoming dated. Dylan Savage wrote the song “Pockets” probably in 2006 and we would be psyched if the lyrical relevancy had disappeared in the past 6 years. It has not. It has escalated. In the song Dylan sings “It’s a war of culture, politics, religion…and they be fillin up their pockets.” The song is basically highlighting the distractions powers that be put out there to confuse the people and divide them, while all the while profiting off of each side. So many of the politically fueled songs were written years ago, but the issues they concern are more amplified and problematic than they have ever been. All you can do is try to be aware and if you run into the situation to change something, chances are you will. You can talk about it or not talk about it, but either way you are always saying something. Bob Marley talks about it. Celine Dion does not. Both are hugely popular artists. One is trying to wake you up and one is trying to put you to sleep.

How does the band approach songwriting? Is it a collaborative effort or are there designated songwriters?

Dylan, Dan Keller, and I have written the bulk of the songs over the past few years. Chris has one song that we have played, and Aaron has stuff we have worked on. When a writer has a song they bring it to the band. We work well together because we know that each person will lay down the right feel on the tune. It is very collaborative.

Your last album included a cover of the Grateful Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie.” Did you include any covers on the new album?

We did not. We hardly ever mess with covers actually. After spending a little time on the mountain in CO we decided to play “Speedway” at a MoBoogie loft session. It ended up sounding great and our manager insisted we put it on the album. We are HEAVILY influenced by the Workingman’s Dead album, so we agreed that it would be a grateful nod.

*What is the meaning behind the title, In These Times?

“In These Times” is a song we have played for years. As an album title, In These Times reflects that all of this material was created in these times that we are living through together. The album reflects a period of our lives where we experienced a lot of growth and change. Bush-Obama war time music. Everything about the times we live in has influenced this music.

Are there any notable guests involved?

The Green sing backup vocals on “All Night Music.” John Brown’s Body’s horn section plays on the songs “Next Best Explosion” and “Healing.”

How do you feel this album will affect the band’s sound going forward?

We hope that people will LOVE it and spread it all over the world. We want to take this operation international. Hanging in some other countries would definitely affect the band’s sound. We hope that this album will lift others up, and increase the world’s awareness of us as a creative entity.