Sorry

Album Review

If the band name Dub Tractor leads you to expect a pastoral style of instrumental roots reggae, think again. In fact, if it leads you to expect a band, think again: Dub Tractor is actually Danish multi-instrumentalist Anders Remmer (formerly of Future 3 and System), and his stage moniker harks back to his musical past more than it tells you much about his present. Sorry does draw on certain elements of dub, primarily its huge, echoey spaces and impressionistic sonic textures. But at the heart of this music is pure, conventional pop songcraft — maybe not always the traditional verse/chorus/bridge structure of pop songs, but always the sweetly catchy melodies and effortless accessibility. The title track features shimmering layers of guitar and quiet percussion that at times sounds nearly incidental, like loops of random noise; "And You Are Back" consists of softly pulsing chords and Anders' voice quietly singing a gentle tune. The most explicit reggae references come on the stunning "It All Went Wrong," which defines an enormous soundscape with huge amounts of very quiet echo. Toward the end a certain gloominess sets in, both for better ("I Don't Get It Anymore") and for worse (the ultimately rather boring "A Lot of Work Is Done"). But even at his dreariest, Anders makes electronically derived pop music that is richly rewarding.