A bit of history about dub music in Marseille….

Under the burning sun of the south of France, the city of Marseille has been the crossroads of civilizations for 2600 years. Capital town of the region “Provence Alpes Cote d’Azur” and third most densely populated city in France, Marseille evokes heat, relaxation and Pastis. Not satisfied with being the hometown of the famous Fernandel or Zidane, Marseille has given rise to many other famous singers and groups : IAM, Massilia Sound System, Soprano, Raspigaous or Chinese Man. When it comes to dub music, Marseille and its neighbor, Aix-en-Provence, are not to be outdone.

The association Musical Riot was created in 2002 and quickly became a reference when talking about dub events. As from 2005, after the famous Dub stations were started in many European cities, Musical Riot got into the organization of the Dub Station Festival in 2010, a few kilometers from Marseille. Furthermore, the association participates in many other festivals: Garance Reggae Festival, Télérama Dub Festival, Rototom Sunsplash… A real reference ! The association Faut Qu’ça Sonne (intimately linked to Citywall) is based in the nearby city of Aix-en-Provence. The team organizes many dub sessions in the region: the Aix Dub Club, the Massive’s Corner of which Welders Hifi is the permanent crew, the Akwadub at the Akwaba, the Southern Resistance Festival near Nîmes… Walking Mess Records is also part of the association and released two good vinyls in 2020. The dub addicts from Aix can also benefit from the sessions named the Skanking Foundation, organized by the CMAE association, and that generally take place at Le Relais since 2011. During these sessions, the Jumping Lion Sound System invites many other sound systems to create memorable meetings. The last of those sessions was a few years ago but the Skanking Foundation sessions aren’t dead ! Still in Aix-en-Provence, the restaurant and “café-concert” associative bar named Les Arcades organizes plenty of concerts where you can listen to Rock, Jazz but also a lot of dub music since they host local and also international sound systems.

Between Aix and Marseille, the Gardanne Minot association has organized several festivals in a lovely park full of trees, with live concerts and Sound system evenings with a great atmosphere. In Marseille the Massilia Hifi Sound System is one of the most active sound systems, they have played many times at the renowned Molotov concert hall, and have recently started to organize the aptly named Dub’N’Pétanque sessions at the organic bar Le Chapiteau. Let’s not forget the Capharn’aüm association, in activity since 2016 they organize dub, reggae, techno and other music style events. Nearly thirty evenings have been organized by this crew, many of them at the Molotov in Marseille.

Anyway, the Bouches du Rhone certainly doesn’t lack sessions and are full of activists that are deeply linked to the Alpes and Avignon dub scene.

When talking about activism, 2 local and independent radios come to mind because they make a big difference in today’s radio stations. The first one, Radio Fly Foot Selecta was created in 2008 and is based in Marseille. It broadcasts reggae, hip-hop and derivative styles 24 hours a day as well as special shows by Natural Hi-Fi and Dj Domisoul. The second one is Radio Zinzine Aix which, since 1997, has been broadcasting music that we don’t usually hear on radio stations, such as the Zinzine Reggae Lab every Sunday afternoon, which we can also occasionally find in sessions.

Concerning Sound systems, there’s also plenty of things to do ! The Jumping Lion Sound System was created in 2006 and is still very active. Massilia Hifi also followed the move and built a sound system and homemade productions in 2008. The Natural Bashy Sound System’s green speakers were built in 2010, then they organized a few sessions named Roots School during which local crews were invited. In 2012, the eclectic Tribal Roots Sound System (Roots, Drum’n’Bass, Dubstep and Bass Music) joined the Aix family before leaving for the Haute Savoie region (more so in the north of France). Around 2014, the Walking Mess Sound System (previously named Natural Warrior), mentioned above, started to participate in many evening events with its 6 scoops. In 2015, Up-full Brothers Sound System joined the dance, as well as Dubtrackz Sound System and their homemade productions. The following year, the Garladub Sound System from Aubagne and the Original Stepper Sound, also build their sound system. Three new Sound systems appeared in 2017, the Livity Yard Sound System, the All Vibes Hifi, and also producers named Black Beanie Dub. Finally, the Lost Wave Sound System concludes this series of new sound systems with their own built in 2018.

Finally, no less than 13 handmade Sound Systems are active in the Marseille region, and that’s without considering those from the Var and Vaucluse regions who regularly come to play around Marseille, so you have here a great list of people and places to skank in the sun !

City Squad : Marseille + Aix, it is the opportunity to (re)discover the universe of 14 artists based around Marseille, each of whom offer you an exclusive tune here in free download. You will be able to listen to more than one hour of music straight outta Marseille City, now you know who dubs your town !