Words by Jesse Serwer—
It’d be hard to find a musical style from the ’60s, ’70s or ’80s that analog-obsessives from Brooklyn, London or elsewhere haven’t tried their hand at recreating in recent years. Mid-’80s-syle digital dancehall might strike some as unreplicatable, but it too is among the genres being faithfully reinterpreted in the modern era.
Brukky’s “Why Yu Nuh” could pass for a lost King Jammy’s 45 from 1986, with impassioned lovers vocals that recall the late Barry Brown. But Brukky is the alias of a (not Jamaican) guy called Dan Klein, frontman for the fairly new Brooklyn band the Frightnrs. The track drops on 45 Sept. 30 via Brooklyn’s Names You Can Trust (the label behind La Mecanica Popular’s LargeUp-approved “La Paz del Freak”) but take a listen below right now, and tell us if it passes your ’80s digital dancehall test. It’s definitely passed ours with flying colors.