Devon Irons Ketch A Vampire 7”

Devon Irons – Ketch Vampire

Also known as Devon Russell, this rocksteady and reggae singer and producer recorded as both a solo artist and as a member of bands including The Tartans and Cultural Roots.

The mood of someone searching for and disposing of a vampire Dracula-style is evoked through echoey keyboards and a remorseless driving reggae beat, and if you close your eyes you can imagine the narrator, driven on by the prophet Obadiah, striding purposefully through dimly lit crypts holding a chalice and torch in search of his quarry.

Listen to the lyrics again, however, and it dawns that there’s maybe more than ‘just’ a vampire hunt going on here; perhaps it’s actually the ‘false Rastafarian’ the narrator has the real issue with? A list of behaviours a true Rastafarian wouldn’t indulge in is rattled while the backing relentlessly maintains the doom laden atmosphere.