The 8th Global Reggae Conference provided two major opportunities for the project. One was to share our work, with members from the global SST team presenting papers across many of the conference panels. A major feature of this sharing of research results was the entire day of SSO#10 Frames and Frequencies film festival with no […]
The SST project has always been concerned with intergenerational knowledge transmission and exchange as this is absolutely essential for the street and popular culture to stand the test of time. We are glad to introduce a series of blogs by guest author, selectress Becca Leathlean who will report on issues such as young people involvement in reggae sound systems in […]
Sound moves. It moves you – to feel and to dance. Sound itself moves – ‘cos its on wheels – as with roller skaters with sound system back packs. They qualify as sonic street technologies. This is a helpful prompt to broaden our thinking about mobile music machines in the way that it emphasises the […]
Este blog es la segunda iteración de una serie de ensayos fotográficos que documentan las actividades en curso llevadas a cabo por las fuerzas locales en la región colombiana de Urabá con el propósito de preservar, nutrir y mejorar la cultura picotera local que se ha visto gravemente afectada por la violencia estructural y la […]
Continuing the recap of our 2022 activities, this week we’re going to focus on our research methodology. The three SST principles of collaboration, respect and recognition, and sharing findings described in Part One of this blog have both informed and been informed by our working research methods. These are both quantitative and global in the […]
If the SST project is about just one thing, it is about bringing technology into life, as distinct from make technology more life-like or invasive. We believe that sonic street technologies are exemplary in enhancing the creative powers and potentials of off-the-shelf electronic components, as well as those lovingly repurposed and customised. In many different […]
South Africa has an impressive reggae sound system scene, with an history spanning over four decades. Most interesting, this scene little-known even in South Africa has developed without any direct influence from Jamaica or the UK. It has always been more-or-less self-sufficient, making it an extremely rich field of research for the SST project. […]
In a previous post, Dakta Dub and Roy Dipankar of Bass Sanskriti wrote about the inception of their new Monkey Sound System. In this post, Dakta Dub, with inputs from Roy Dipankar, takes us through the idiosyncrasies of Indian bureaucracy and cultural spheres that they navigated prior to their sound system launch, and lessons to take […]
‘Dance a yard before you dance abroad’ refers to the notion of conquering your own territory before trying to conquer someone else’s. It’s a term heard in the lyrics of reggae songs, a DJ’s diss to another, or a demeaning phrase (cuss) used to put someone in their place. Basically, know yourself! However, the essence of […]
As a global research project, the SST blog is very pleased to report on emerging sound systems and other SST around the world. This is especially the case in countries where sound system culture is not yet well established – there are very few operating in India. Monkey Sound System intended to have its birthday […]