‘Scientist Meets Hepcat: Scientific Dub Special’ out December 6 via Trust Records.

Hepcat was formed in 1989 by the late vocalist Greg Lee and keyboardist Deston Berry. Their soulful harmonies and mellow rhythms were unlike those of contemporaries and more akin to musicians from the heyday of 1960s Jamaican ska. Mixed with elements of soul, jazz and R&B, their singular sound quickly cemented them as staples in Los Angeles’ burgeoning ska scene in the early 90’s. Following the release of their critically acclaimed debut ‘Out Of Nowhere’ on legendary label Moon Ska Records, Hepcat released their signature sophomore effort in 1996, ‘Scientific’. “It’s the album in which we all got together and figured sh*t out, tweaking controls and dialing in the perfect vibe, like a chemistry set—hence the name. We spent so much time and energy on that album. Labor of love, worth every moment” band tell. Fast forward to 2021, archival label Trust Records purchased controlling interest of the BYO catalog, including Hepcat’s ‘Scientific’. While in discussions with late founding member and lead vocalist Greg Lee on how he would like to see the album re-released, he let it be known that his dream of all dreams was to have legendary dub producer Scientist create a dub version of the album. Hopeton Brown, known as Scientist, is the legendary electronic and studio engineer, considered to be one the forefathers of Dub Music. He developed his skills in the late 70’s and 80’s at the legendary King Tubby Studios with the revolutionary use of reverb, delay, and other effects to transform traditional reggae tracks into groundbreaking dubs. To date, Scientist has over 50,000 song credits, and he is still creating today.

“Greg Lee believed it would be cool if Scientist would dub ‘Scientific’. He liked the play on names and the historic implications. Like a true fan, Greg sought out information from various sources and finally was introduced to Scientist by Brian Wallace aka: Dub Robot at the legendary Dub Club in Los Angeles. Greg worked his magic and Scientist agreed to create dub’s of ‘Scientific’. The rest is now history” Hepcat explain. Those final dub mixes of Scientific were approved by Greg Lee and the band in January of 2024, just before Greg tragically died two months later of a brain aneurysm. “Greg Lee is Hepcat personified. One of the strongest and greatest songwriters of Hepcat’s history. A mastermind. A positive source of inspiration. A leader. An eternal flame. The member who kept it fun and enjoyable, while being strong, and powerful at the same time”.

‘Scientist Meets Hepcat: Scientific Dub Special’ and the deluxe reissue of ‘Scientific’ will be released across digital retailers on December 6 via Trust Records. The vinyl version is limited to 500 copies and will be included as a bonus record for fans who purchase the ‘Scientific’ deluxe reissue. It arrives in-stores on December 6 and is the first time the classic is available on vinyl in years. All audio from record was remastered from the original analog tapes by Pete Lyman. Hepcat share Scientist’s remix of ‘Bobby And Joe (Rambo Dub)’ alongside the lost video for the original single. Director Jamie Stern tells, “I found two masters of the song video. One was censored for MTV. I remember they wanted certain things edited and so I made a f*ck you version that had big black bars that said censored across the screen. It was in a competition on MTV called 12 Angry Viewers. They would watch 3 videos in an episode and vote on the best one. I was in NYC shooting a video for The Bouncing Souls and we saw it. We had no idea it was going to be in this competition. It was up against like Alanis Morissette and another big top 40 band or something and Hepcat won! We were all so excited! Then it moved up in the competition and beat out some other huge big budget videos! Our little $2500 ska video! Not too shabby.”

Photo by Jiro Schneider

‘Scientist Meets Hepcat: Scientific Dub Special’ – Deluxe Reissue Tracklisting:

01. Caribbean Tiger
02. Country Time (THC Rum Dub)
03. Bobby And Joe (Rambo Dub)
04. Black Sky (Moonbase Alpha Dub)
05. Keep On (Keep on Dubbing)
06. Home (Eye Ten East Dub)
07. Caribbean Tiger 2 (Radio Promo Calls Annete)
08. Marcus Garvey (The Ark)
09. Dollar Dance (Wedding Dub)
10. Come Out (Dancing Shoes)
11. Caribbean Tiger 3
12. Positive (Double Negative Dub)
13. Caribbean Tiger 4
14. Lovin’ Man (Born to Lub Dub)
15. The Fool (Foolish Dub)