Island Reggae started as a simple idea inspired by friendship.
My good Kiwi mate Kevin has never really been into Boneve’s more experimental electro-glitch side, but he loves reggae. So one day I thought — why not make a reggae track? Not necessarily for him, but definitely inspired by his energy and love for the genre.
I started building the foundation at the studio: The Island Reggae organ, offbeat rhythms, classic dub textures and laid-back grooves. Somehow all the pieces clicked together naturally.
The next step came when Colin Reeves dropped by the studio and added bass to the track, giving it the weight and movement it needed.
From there I took the song to Margaret River to work with Saul Harvey Cresswell.
Saul brought the track to life with skank guitar, extra textures, additional bass and beautiful Stratocaster parts that instantly expanded the whole atmosphere of the song.
At that point we all knew there was one more ingredient missing — trumpet.
So we called in Dave Rastrick.
When Dave arrived at the container studio, the session flowed effortlessly. We told him to improvise, and just go wherever the music wanted to go.
He completely elevated the track, adding warmth, soul and pure magic to the recording.
After countless rounds of mixing, remixing and mastering — on again, off again, over and over — the collaboration between the four of us finally became Island Reggae.
A grassroots track built from friendship and a shared love of music.
Released May 31.
Injoy.