Victor Rice
Encyclopedia
Victor Rice is a musician and producer from New York City
. He is most noted for his work within the third wave ska genre of the 1990s through the early 2000s, as both a bassist
and as a producer
.
He first played ska
music in 1988 in The Scofflaws
, a band that played ska in a more traditional 1960s style than other New York bands of that time. Rice produced recordings for many of the bands on the Moon Records
label. As Moon Records fell on hard financial times, Rice began experimenting with dub music
. Version City, a small studio in Brooklyn
, was opening right around the time of Moons' closing. Jeff "King Django
" Baker, the studio's founder, gave out three keys to the studio: one to Vic Ruggiero
, one to "Agent" Jay Nugent
, and one to Victor Rice. Version City and its record label
Stubborn Records had a much different focus than that of Moon; one which allowed Rice to branch out and explore his dub techniques. Rice was allowed to come into the studio at all hours, and it was there that Rice compiled his first solo record. Rice has also played bass in the Stubborn All-Stars.
Victor Rice has a very distinct dub style from that of early dub pioneers such as King Tubby
and Augustus Pablo
. While he employs many of the standard delay
, echo
, and reverb effects, he works with much faster-paced rhythms, often recorded in a straight ska
style, rather than the traditional roots reggae
rhythms found in Jamaican dub. In 2002, Rice moved to Sao Paulo
, Brazil
, where he has continued to produce recordings for various styles of musicians. In 2004, he released the album In America. The title comes from the fact that it was created in both North America
and South America
(recorded in New York, and finished in São Paulo).
In addition to playing his own compositions the Victor Rice Octet, he has also taken his dubbing skills to the stage, performing with an analog reel-to-reel tape machine and live effects, under the name Strikkly Vikkly Dubsystem.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He is most noted for his work within the third wave ska genre of the 1990s through the early 2000s, as both a bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
and as a producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
.
He first played ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
music in 1988 in The Scofflaws
The Scofflaws
The Scofflaws are a Huntington, Long Island, New York-based third wave ska band that debuted in 1988. Known for their rambunctious live shows, technically proficient horn solos and tight arrangements, The Scofflaws were one of the top third wave ska acts of the '90s and one of the most beloved...
, a band that played ska in a more traditional 1960s style than other New York bands of that time. Rice produced recordings for many of the bands on the Moon Records
Moon Records
Moon Records may refer to:*Moon Records Ukraine, a Ukrainian record label*Moon Ska Records, a former American record label*Moon Records , a former Canadian record label mainly for Rush...
label. As Moon Records fell on hard financial times, Rice began experimenting with dub music
Dub music
Dub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
. Version City, a small studio in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, was opening right around the time of Moons' closing. Jeff "King Django
King Django
Jeff Baker, better known as King Django, is a New Brunswick, NJ-based ska musician. He was the leader of Skinnerbox and Stubborn All-Stars....
" Baker, the studio's founder, gave out three keys to the studio: one to Vic Ruggiero
Vic Ruggiero
Victor "Vic" Ruggiero, is a musician, songwriter and producer from New York City who has played in many ska bands, such as The Slackers, Stubborn All-Stars, SKAndalous All Stars, Crazy Baldhead and The Silencers...
, one to "Agent" Jay Nugent
Jay Nugent
Jayson Nugent is a guitarist and DJ from New York who plays in the style of several Jamaican music genres....
, and one to Victor Rice. Version City and its record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
Stubborn Records had a much different focus than that of Moon; one which allowed Rice to branch out and explore his dub techniques. Rice was allowed to come into the studio at all hours, and it was there that Rice compiled his first solo record. Rice has also played bass in the Stubborn All-Stars.
Victor Rice has a very distinct dub style from that of early dub pioneers such as King Tubby
King Tubby
King Tubby was a Jamaican electronics and sound engineer, known primarily for his influence on the development of dub in the 1960s and 1970s...
and Augustus Pablo
Augustus Pablo
Horace Swaby , known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican roots reggae and dub record producer, melodica player and keyboardist, active from the 1970s onwards. He popularized the use of the melodica in reggae music...
. While he employs many of the standard delay
Delay (audio effect)
Delay is an audio effect which records an input signal to an audio storage medium, and then plays it back after a period of time. The delayed signal may either be played back multiple times, or played back into the recording again, to create the sound of a repeating, decaying echo.-Early delay...
, echo
Echo (phenomenon)
In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound, arriving at the listener some time after the direct sound. Typical examples are the echo produced by the bottom of a well, by a building, or by the walls of an enclosed room and an empty room. A true echo is a single...
, and reverb effects, he works with much faster-paced rhythms, often recorded in a straight ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
style, rather than the traditional roots reggae
Roots reggae
Roots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of the artists concerned, including the spiritual side of Rastafari and with the honoring of God, called Jah by rastafarians. It also is identified with the life of the ghetto sufferer, and the rural poor...
rhythms found in Jamaican dub. In 2002, Rice moved to Sao Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, where he has continued to produce recordings for various styles of musicians. In 2004, he released the album In America. The title comes from the fact that it was created in both North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
(recorded in New York, and finished in São Paulo).
In addition to playing his own compositions the Victor Rice Octet, he has also taken his dubbing skills to the stage, performing with an analog reel-to-reel tape machine and live effects, under the name Strikkly Vikkly Dubsystem.
Discography (as a producer)
- Scofflaws, The ScofflawsThe ScofflawsThe Scofflaws are a Huntington, Long Island, New York-based third wave ska band that debuted in 1988. Known for their rambunctious live shows, technically proficient horn solos and tight arrangements, The Scofflaws were one of the top third wave ska acts of the '90s and one of the most beloved...
(1991) - Ska In Hi-Fi, The ScofflawsThe ScofflawsThe Scofflaws are a Huntington, Long Island, New York-based third wave ska band that debuted in 1988. Known for their rambunctious live shows, technically proficient horn solos and tight arrangements, The Scofflaws were one of the top third wave ska acts of the '90s and one of the most beloved...
(1995) - OoloolooOoloolooOolooloo is the second album by the ska/soul band The Pietasters. It was released in 1995 .In November of 2011, Connecticut's Asbestos Records and Chicago, IL's Underground Communiqué Records launched a fundraiser together on Kickstarter to release "Oolooloo" on vinyl, among other third-wave ska...
, The PietastersThe PietastersThe Pietasters are a seven-piece ska/soul band hailing from Washington, D.C., with additional members from Maryland and Virginia.- History :In 1990, a group of friends were attending college at Virginia Tech in the mountains of Virginia...
(1995) - Better Late Than Never, The Slackers (1996)
- Dance With Me, The Bluebeats (1996)
- Flip F'Real, The Articles (1997)
- Ripe, Skavoovie and the EpitonesSkavoovie and the epitonesSkavoovie and the Epitones is a ten piece third wave ska band that formed in Wellesley, Massachusetts in 1994.Skavoovie and the Epitones have a traditional 1960s ska sound with heavy jazz and big band influences. The band was signed to Moon Ska Records before the members had finished high school,...
(1997) - Version City Dub Clash', 'Version City Rockers
- More Like This Than That, One Groovy Coconut (1998)
- Nicer by the Hour, Rocker-T (1998)
- Before The Revolution, The Adjusters (1998)
- Gangster Politics, Gangster Politics (1998)
- Age of Insects, Skandalous All-StarsSKAndalous All-StarsThe SKAndalous All-Stars are a ska band, composed of members of The Slackers, the Skatalites, Mephiskapheles, the Stubborn All-Stars, Agent 99, Ruder Than You, Sic & Mad, The Excalibur, Cocktaillica, The Hurtin' Buckaroos, Living Colour, PErFect ThYroID, the Cycle Sluts From Hell, and the...
(1998) - Cure For What Ales You, Skoidats (1999)
- "(self-titled)", FirebugFirebugThe firebug, Pyrrhocoris apterus, is a common insect of the family Pyrrhocoridae. Easily recognizable due to its striking red and black colouration, it is distributed throughout the Palaearctic from the Atlantic coast of Europe to northwest China. It has also been reported from the USA, Central...
(2003) - Victor Rice in America, Victor Rice (2003)
- Moon Invaders, The Moon Invaders (2003)
- Breakin' Free, The Moon Invaders (2005)
- Dubber Side of the MoonDubber Side of the MoonDubber Side of the Moon is the second dub reggae tribute to the Pink Floyd album, The Dark Side of the Moon, by New York-based band Easy Star All-Stars. The album features bass-heavy dub remixes by prominent dub producers of its predecessor, Easy Star Records' 2003 release Dub Side of the Moon...
, Easy Star All-StarEasy Star All-StarsOriginally formed as a studio band for the label's earliest recordings, Easy Star All-Stars is a reggae collective with a rotating roster of musicians and singers founded by the co-founders of New York City-based Easy Star Records in 1997...
(2010)
Discography (as a musician)
- Scofflaws, The ScofflawsThe ScofflawsThe Scofflaws are a Huntington, Long Island, New York-based third wave ska band that debuted in 1988. Known for their rambunctious live shows, technically proficient horn solos and tight arrangements, The Scofflaws were one of the top third wave ska acts of the '90s and one of the most beloved...
- Bass (1991) - World Upside Down, Glenn Branca - Bass (1992)
- New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble, New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble - Bass (1995)
- Open Season, Stubborn All-StarsStubborn All-StarsStubborn All-Stars are a New York City ska band led by King Django, front man of Skinnerbox and owner of Stubborn Records.By early 1994, Django's original ska roots began to tug at him, and he assembled Stubborn All-Stars for a studio session which resulted in the 4-song Old's Cool 7" EP...
- Bass, Bass (Electric), Vocals (bckgr), String Bass (1995) - Sloan Wainwright, Sloan WainwrightSloan WainwrightSloan Wainwright is an artist and member of the American independent music scene. Her musical style consists of a combination of folk, rock, jazz, and blues, an approach which owes itself to her time writing and performing throughout the Greenwich Village.-Family:Sloan Wainwright is a younger...
- Bass, Bass (Electric) (1996) - Back with a New Batch, Stubborn All-StarsStubborn All-StarsStubborn All-Stars are a New York City ska band led by King Django, front man of Skinnerbox and owner of Stubborn Records.By early 1994, Django's original ska roots began to tug at him, and he assembled Stubborn All-Stars for a studio session which resulted in the 4-song Old's Cool 7" EP...
- String Bass (1997) - Low Blow, New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble - Bass (1997)
- Give 'Em the Boot, Various Artists - Bass (1997)
- Flip F'real, The Articles - Bass (1997)
- Get This, New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble - Bass (1998)
- Nicer By the Hour, Rocker-T & Version City... - Bass, Keyboards (1998)
- Nex Music, Stubborn All-StarsStubborn All-StarsStubborn All-Stars are a New York City ska band led by King Django, front man of Skinnerbox and owner of Stubborn Records.By early 1994, Django's original ska roots began to tug at him, and he assembled Stubborn All-Stars for a studio session which resulted in the 4-song Old's Cool 7" EP...
- Organ, Bass (Electric), String Bass (1999) - At Version City, Victor Rice - Bass (1999)
- Anti-Racist Action Benefit, Various Artists - Bass (1999)
- Age of Insects, SKAndalous All-StarsSKAndalous All-StarsThe SKAndalous All-Stars are a ska band, composed of members of The Slackers, the Skatalites, Mephiskapheles, the Stubborn All-Stars, Agent 99, Ruder Than You, Sic & Mad, The Excalibur, Cocktaillica, The Hurtin' Buckaroos, Living Colour, PErFect ThYroID, the Cycle Sluts From Hell, and the...
- Bass, Percussion (1999) - Before the Revolution, The Adjusters - Bass, Guitar, Piano (1998)
- Brendan& The Extenuating..., Brendan & The Extenuating... - Bass (1998)
- Eat at Whitey's, Everlast - Bass (2000)
- Brendan & The Extenuating..., Groovelily - Bass (2000)
- Mi Selecta, Various Artists - Bass (2000)
- Small Comfort, Cecilia Kirtland - Bass (2000)
- In America, Victor Rice - Bass
- Firebug, FirebugFirebugThe firebug, Pyrrhocoris apterus, is a common insect of the family Pyrrhocoridae. Easily recognizable due to its striking red and black colouration, it is distributed throughout the Palaearctic from the Atlantic coast of Europe to northwest China. It has also been reported from the USA, Central...
- Bass, Organ, Melodica (2004) - On the Move, FirebugFirebugThe firebug, Pyrrhocoris apterus, is a common insect of the family Pyrrhocoridae. Easily recognizable due to its striking red and black colouration, it is distributed throughout the Palaearctic from the Atlantic coast of Europe to northwest China. It has also been reported from the USA, Central...
- Bass, Organ, Melodica (2006) - Lover's Choice Babylove and the Van Dangoes - Bass (2008)