Ben Wa was an American

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

band from Oakland, California comprising Anthony "House" Chaba (programming and bass guitar) and Eric Ware (programming and keyboards), who had worked together before in bands such as Limbomaniacs, Big Janitor, and MCM & the Monster.Ben Wa
biography on ''

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

''. After releasing a four track ''EP 1'' full of breaks and electro in 1998 they began recording their debut album '' Devil Dub'' featuring guest musicians such as guitarists

Buckethead Brian Patrick Carroll (born May 13, 1969), known professionally as Buckethead, is an American guitarist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has received critical acclaim for his innovative electric guitar playing. His music spans severa ...

and M.I.R.V., drummer

Bryan "Brain" Mantia Bryan Kei Mantia (born February 4, 1963), known professionally as Brain, is an American rock drummer. He has played with bands such as Primus, Guns N' Roses, Praxis, and Godflesh, and with other performers such as Tom Waits, Serj Tankian, Bill ...

and turntablist

DJ Disk DJ Disk is a turntablist from the San Francisco Bay Area. He is of Panamanian, Colombian, and Nicaraguan descent. Born Luis Quintanilla on October 7, 1970, in San Francisco, Disk began scratching and mixing vinyl at a young age. In 1992, he joined ...

, plus

Scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosoph ...

live on stage for the release party in January 1999. Chaba and Ware had met Scientist when opening for Bill Laswell's

Praxis Praxis may refer to: Philosophy and religion * Praxis (process), the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, practised, embodied, or realised * Praxis model, a way of doing theology * Praxis (Byzantine Rite), the practice of fai ...

in San Francisco.Michelle Goldberg:
Ben Wa's debut CD, 'Devil Dub,' offers classic old-school dub.
' In: ''Metro Silicon Valley'', January 7, 1999. Reviews for ''Devil Dub'' were positive with '' URB'' calling it "one of the most crucial records of any genre released this year" and Michelle Goldberg of ''

Metro Silicon Valley ''Metro'' is a free weekly newspaper published by the San Jose, California, based Metro Newspapers. Also known as ''Metro Silicon Valley'', as well as ''Metroactive'' online, the paper serves the greater Silicon Valley area. In addition to print ...

'' stating: "The lazy pace is lulling, but like Tricky's music, it's more edgy and creepy than ethereal." Rick Anderson of ''Allmusic'' gave 4,5 out of 5 stars, writing: "This is remarkably pleasant stuff." Noah Wayne of online music magazine '' Splendid'' wrote: "It's campy, it's twisted, it's dub!" Two of their tracks, "Re-Dub" and "Ephedream", were included on Laswell's releases ''Reanimator: Black Market Science'' and ''Tetragrammaton - Submerge''. They also contributed tracks to a few other dub compilations. Another EP called ''Elektro-Krazy'' followed in 2000, again concentrating on breaks and electro and described on ''

Epitonic First launched in 1999, Epitonic was a source for independent music across multiple genres from both signed and unsigned artists. Featuring free and legal MP3 downloads, radio streams, and many full album streams, at its peak it amassed content fr ...

'' as "the gap between Detroit techno and funky dance floor breaks in a most ingenious way". Their next album ''Disciples Of Retro-Tech'' was released in 2001 as a double vinyl and single compact disc, featuring explorations of pure electro and synth-pop terrain. Stephen Cook of ''Allmusic'' wrote: "The hybrid mix is so inventive that suspect pastiche and old-school chic absolutely do not figure into it". He gave the album 4 out of 5 stars. Daiv Whaley of music newspaper ''Hear/Say'' concluded his review: "This is cool, accessible music for every child of man and machine. File under 'electro-funk,' file under 'fantastic.'"

Discography

* ''EP 1'' (12" EP on Black Hole Records, 1998) * '' Devil Dub'' (CD album on Black Hole Records, 1998) * ''Elektro-Krazy'' (12" EP on Malvado Records, 2000) * ''Retro-Tech EP'' (12" EP on

Stray Records Stray Records was an American record label based in Oakland, California. In its short period of activity from 1998 to 2001 the subsidiary of Dogday Records released several dozen records. Artists of Stray included DJ Cue and Eddie Def (both member ...

, 2001) * ''Disciples Of Retro-Tech'' (Double vinyl and single CD album on Stray Records, 2001)

Devil Dub

''Devil Dub'' is the 1999 debut album by

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

band Ben Wa consisting of "Dr. Ware" and "House"( Limbomaniacs, Tommy Guerrero, Buckethead's Giant Robot, MCM & the Monster). After forming in 1997, contributing to several compilations and releasing an EP in 1998, ''Devil Dub'' was the first full-length release by the duo. House sums up: Guest musicians finally included avant-garde guitarist

, drummer

Brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a ve ...

(with Primus at this time) and

(from the

Invisibl Skratch Piklz The Invisibl Skratch Piklz are an American group of turntablists. The members of the group were originally hip-hop DJs, who were among the pioneers of the turntablism movement in the 1990s; turntablists create musical pieces by mixing sampl ...

). A critics from ''URB magazine'' called it "one of the most crucial records of any genre released this year".

Track listing

Personnel

– guitar, neuro-pulse guitar-activated Larynx Modeler *

– turntable, orange Bear *

– beats * M.I.R.V. – broken guitar *Adrian Isabell – percussion *Dr. Ware – keyboards, programming *House – bass, programming *Dow W. Patten – preacher *Recorded at Tyrell Studios, Oakland CA *Produced by Ben Wa.

Notes

Ben wa humbly acknowledged the following for inspiration:

Mad Professor Mad Professor (born Neil Joseph Stephen Fraser, 1955, Georgetown, Guyana) is a Guyanese-born British dub music producer and engineer known for his original productions and remix work. He is considered one of the leading producers of dub music ...

Lee 'Scratch' Perry Lee may refer to: Name Given name * Lee (given name), a given name in English Surname * Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee: ** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname ** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese s ...

King Tubby Osbourne Ruddock (28 January 1941 – 6 February 1989), better known as King Tubby, was a Jamaican sound engineer who greatly influenced the development of dub in the 1960s and 1970s. Tubby's innovative studio work, which saw him elevate the ...

, Sly and Robbie,

Bill Laswell William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, ...

and Kraftwerk.

References

External links

* *
Official website
as archived on July 28, 2009. *
GearTalk: Ben Wa
'. In: ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

'', April 4, 2001. * Chris Baty:
Ben There, Done That.
' In: ''

SF Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards ...

'', October 17, 2001. * Cleofus Williams:
Runnin' With The Devil
', gogorilla.com

Interview by Martijn Busink, 2002
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ben Wa Electronic music groups from California Musical groups established in 1998 Musical groups disestablished in 2001