Attention all spiritual roots reggae fans, your modern day prophets have arrived! Sonoma County isn’t exactly where you might expect to find a thriving music scene but for the past decade the beautiful Northern California wine country has been bottling a rastafarian vintage even the most distinguished musical pallette can not ignore. Harrison Stafford and his stellar supporting cast of the band GROUNDATION have come to deliver the message of JAH in the most beautiful way possible – through musical exploration and contagious positive energy. I was lucky enough to see them bring their latest stylings to the stage a couple weeks ago at the world famous Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach and oh how Babylon did fall! Leaving behind the polluted stop and go mess of Orange County commuter traffic I navigated my south through the last stretch of uninhabited coastline in Southern California and had their new album – Here I Am – putting my subwoofer through a set of push ups the Marines at Camp Pendleton would have admired. The sun was setting over the Pacific and my mind was racing with the anticipation of their live performance, I couldn’t help but smile and appreciate where life had delivered me that evening. I had seen Groundation the year before at Belly Up and knew that if this show was anything like the last, I was in for something special. Arrived on the scene with a few good friends in-tow and proceeded to witness one of the most inspiring and soothing live performances you can imagine.

Groundation- Everyone Could Lose (Here I Am 2009)

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Harrison Stafford is the lead singer and guitarist for the group and while his physical presence is anything but large, his voice, long beard, and commanding stage presence make it clear the lion of judah roars from within his chest. The lyrics he sings also make it obvious he is not merely a student of his reggae inspirations that have come before him, instead he has claimed the role of professor to those who will come after. Quite literally – Mr. Stafford has taught the history of rastafari and reggae culture at the University level so grab your pencil and paper kids because you’re gonna want to take notes and fully absorb what’s coming at you when they take the stage. The supporting cast entails 8 other exceptionally talented musicians: keyboardist Marcus Urani, who co-founded Groundation with Stafford and bassist Ryan Newman, David “Diesel” Chachere (trumpet), Kelsey Howard (trombone), newest recruit Te Kanawa Haereiti (drums), Mingo Lewis Jr. (percussion), Kim Pommell (vocals) and Stephanie Wallace (vocals). Saying their live sound is rich and full of soul would be like simply calling the sun hot. Stafford leads the team through slow-paced, dubbed-out, jazzy, funky reggae beats and they can all bring the heat.

The most impressive part of their act is how amazingly well their unique sound continues to feed off itself through each others solos and improvisation. We’re not talking about your scripted 3-4 minute carbon-copy reggae ditties here, we’re talkin 6-10 minute expansive jams that linger and push the soul through an maze of positive vibrations. Every one on stage has multiple chances to seamlessly showcase their individual talents and style bringing the audience closer and closer. They covered the Beatles tune, paid tribute to Bob and absolutely hammered down most of the tracks from their newest album as well as a few oldies to the delight of North County SD – it was a sight to be seen without a doubt. The current US tour comes to an end as I’m writing this with the band making their way back over to Europe to continue spreading their vibe accross the globe. If I were you, I would make it a point to find them the next chance you can to see firsthand the pure positive energy Groundation brings in the flesh. Pick up their new album – Here I Am – on their website -www.groundation.com and check out all the educational tools they have decided to make available to the common man as well. In the words of Harrison Stafford “This is only the beginning…”. Keep it coming Groundation, we’re all ears.

Groundation- If I

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