Reviews
for She Dubs Me... Dub Never Sleeps EP, Leading a Horse to Water, etc 

Ba Ba Boom! EP review - Sunday Star Times CD Of The Week, November 16, 2008, Grant Smithies
A punchy mix of skanking reggae, tongue-in-cheek techno and retro hiphop, this five-track EP from Auckland's Pete McLennan arrives just in time for summer. The horn-heavy title track is a soulful speaker-shaker of rare brilliance, while Smash Thru with MC Kyla brings a bulging trunk of funk to the party. Shake that hotel room indeed!

Ba Ba Boom! EP review - Back2Basics magazine, October issue, Martyn Pepperell, 3 and a half stars
Ba Ba Boom finds McLennan exploring a divergent sonic palette, nimbly held together by a recurring use of funk-fueled breakbeat patterns... The disc kicks off with Smash Thru, an old school hiphop sound that quickly turns into horn and scratch-heavy track title track Ba ba Boom! - easily my favourite song off the release. The cut blends instrumental hiphop and bigg band funk with effortless cool. My Sneaker Collection Weighs A Ton follows, in esence an old school stab-driven breakdance funk tune... Ba Ba Boom is an accomplished release.


Ba Ba Boom! EP review - Graham Reid from Elsewhere.co.nz...
"terrific EP of beats, hip-hop meets reggae culture, and much more.. I have been cranking these five tracks up way, way loud... these tracks reference everything from a King Tubby/Studio One stoned ska session in Jamaica with scratching, to rebel pop and old school hip-hop from the Bronx in the 80s.
It's a kinda mad but focused mix-up and very quirky. Funked up too.

Groove Guide review....by Fleur Jack (Groove Guide #237, 17 Sept 08).
"Ba Ba Boom is the latest release for Dub Asylum and the five tracks are hiving and jiving and the perfect selection of songs to shake your booty to... musically it opens with "Smash Thru" which features the incredible vocal and lyric writing styles of MC Kyla. The second track features the horn section of the WBC and there's something friendly about the track that reminds me of Sesame Street in a very good way! The real dub starts to shine through from tracks 2-4 and it gets mellower and slower as it goes on finishing with a beautiful track that features Sandy Mill on vocals. Love it!"  4 stars


Niceup.org.nz review, by Naram, Dub Asylum - Ba Ba Boom (EP)

"The standout track for me would definitely be Ba Ba Boom. The track sees Peter mash-up some old-skool reggae samples with a crackling hip-hop beat and horn parts from the WBC (a local Ska band) to forge a sound that lies somewhere between late 60s rocksteady and early 90s East Coast hip-hop. It's a sonically-pleasing mix that would go down a treat on the dance floor. The Ep is a solid example of contemporary beat-making and I will definitely look out for the full album."

She dubs me 12" remix ep

Buy it now from SmokeCDs.com

Grant Smithies, Sunday Star Times, 1 August 2004.
"There's a spanking new vinyl remix EP from ex-Hallelujah Picasso Peter McLennan, now recording solo as Dub Asylum, in which tracks from his recent She Dubs Me, She Dubs Me Not album are given a good studio slapping by four local production teams. Best track? The hypnotically grinding Rob Warner/Josh Webb mix of What the Funk, featuring ex-Auckland resident Sandy Mill (last seen in London recording vocals for Basement Jaxx), with the speaker cone-cracking bass'n'breakbeat Shumacher/Substax mix of Scratch N Sniff coming a close second."

Jeff Neems, Waikato Times July 15 2004, 5 stars.
Holy Hector - a vinyl record! This homegrown 12-inch EP features four remixed tunes from Dub Asylum's excellent She Dubs Me, She Dubs Me Not album, and each track is a killer. Dub Asylum is Auckland producer Peter McLennan - ex Hallelujah Picassos - who rubs shoulders with some of our freshest DJ's producers and remixers.
Scratch N Sniff is brilliantly redone by Timmy Schumacher and Substax, the result a heavy-duty breakbeat workout which would make Freq Nasty or Adam Freeland quake in their boots. Cranked on a large PA, this particular remix would blow the freakin roof off.
Audiosluts remix of You're So Sensible has a similar feel, albeit at a slightly slower tempo, but aided in its sonic soundscape by Willa O'Niell's wafting vocals.
Flick it over (that's what you do with records, remember?), and there;s two mixes of What the Funk, the first a funky tech-house reworking from pioneering Auckland DJ/producer Rob Warner, plus more great vocals courtesy of Sandy Mill. The second mix, by Matt Scott at Woodcut Productions, is a down-tempo hiphop gem which rounds things out nicely after the preceding bin-shaking bonanza.
A crucial addition for anyone who likes electronica or Kiwi music, but you'd best be in quick because only a few hundred were pressed.

She dubs me, she dubs me not (album)

Buy it now from SmokeCDs.com
or from Real Groovy Records

Russell Baillie, NZ Herald 21 September 2002
(Herald rating: * * * * )
The other night at the b-Net Awards while watching the performance by the all-conquering Salmonella Dub a thought occurred and it soon developed into a half-baked theory.
But this is a record review so that's allowed and it goes something like this. Inevitably this striking debut album by Auckland outfit Dub Asylum will be compared to Salmonella Dub.
But arguably the latter's local success owes something to the groundwork laid in the early 90s by the Hallelujah Picassos, the Auckland band whose enthusiasm for mashing up reggae, dub, ska and punk made for a band, who, while never quite firing on an album, still had their moments.
Live, they created something exciting out of their musical multiple personality disorder.
Well, whaddya know - Dub Asylum is a sort of post-electronic Hallelujah reunion. Or it's at least the brainchild of that band's guitarist Peter McLennan whose supporting players include the old group's sometime singer Bobbylon and bassist-keyboardist John Pain.
But most of the 15 tracks' allure comes from the Strawpeople-like group of women vocalists consisting of the soul-powered Sandy Mill, the attractively icy Paulette Edwards and actress Willa O'Neill showing on You're So Sensible (here in two mixes) that she's as good with a Sinead-like melody as she is with a script.
Among the other highlights are the bossanova-grooved Patience, the sultry slowburner What the Funk?, and the ragga-grooved, Bobbylon-crooned R U Ready.
Add a couple of lounge-friendly instrumental excursions like Scratch N Sniff, Revenge of the Rogue Field Transmitters, and the sax attack of Loopy Fruits and you've got a quite a collection of seductive songs and sonic fun.
Even better, you don't have to be a lunatic for all things dub to enjoy your stay at the asylum.

Tom Cardy, Dominion Post, 19 September 2002
(****) CD Of The Week
Kiwi band the Hallelujah Picassos weren't scared to mix reggae and ska in with trash and punk to make its distinctive musical stew in the 1990s. Former Picassos muso Peter McLennan is also unafraid to splice dub, reggae, hiphop and funk under the guise of Dub Asylum. The results could have been half-baked, like a music fan having too much time at a mixing desk and clicking a mouse for Pro Tools. But McLennan's debut is anything but.
Whether it be the downbeat dubby delights of Mean Streets with its thumping bass and tin pan alley keyboards, or the infectious and danceable R U Ready, reworked by Pitch Black's Paddy Free. This is further evidence that New Zealand dance music has come of age.
What the Funk? mixes fuzzy guitar and slippery vocals from Sandy Mill into a mix which pays homage to the grittiest 70s funk, while at the same time sounding like a message from the future. The cleaner electro of You're so Sensible with singer Willa O'Neill, best known as an actor in Scarfies, also succeeds in atmospherics - even if O'Neill sounds strangely like Fiona McDonald. The only by-the-numbers track is Freddy is a Badass.
It could be considered sacrilege in some quarters, but Dub Asylum may even be the best thing McLennan's ever done. Hallelujah!

Daily Post (Rotorua) 26 September 2002. 5/5 stars
All-star talent cast.
Release the dubs! From the connotations of the album sleeve onwards, this may be the top contender for the coveted title of "The Sound of Summer - 02/03".
Dub Asylum is the latest musical alias for Peter McLennan, former member off 90s reggae/thrash/punk/ska mutants the Halelujah Picassos. Mixing up scratchy old hip hop drum loops and samples with dubbed out guitar and keyboards, She Dubs Me, She Dubs Me Not features an all-star cast of talent, the likes of which have not been seen since Bootsy Collins last put together a disc.
Nick Atkinson (Supergroove, The Roughness) Bobbylon (Hallelujah Picassos) and Tom Ludvigson (A Trip To The Moon) all contribute in varying capacities, but the coup de grace is the addition of Willa O'Neill on vocal duties for You're So Sensible.
In addition to being a great actress (see Scarfies and Topless Women Talk About Their Lives) Willa is also possessed of a fantastic singing voice.
She Dubs Me is so groovy, even George Dub-ya himself would get down. File it between Salmonella Dub and Linton Kwesi Johnson in your collection.

John Gray, Rip It Up Magazine, October 2002
Dub Asylum is Peter McLennan, former member of 90's reggae-thrash-punk-ska hybrid the Hallelujah Picassos. Numerous elements have been used to construct his sound and debut album, including a self-confessed mashup of scratchy old hip hop drum loops and samples with dubbed out keyboards and guitars. It can only be described as ragga drum'n'bass with an almost indie tip in places. It sure aint repetitive.
The track Loopy Fruits, for example, has a drum n bass break so hard it'd quite easily knock the makeup off an unsuspecting tart's chops. Whereas Scratch n Sniff goes to the other end of the spectrum. NZ dub is once again in promising hands.

Moana Maniapoto, (Moana and the Moa Hunters) Guest Reviewer. Internet Magazine, November 2002.
Moana here. Kiaora people. So I get this pile of CDs. Guess which one I gravitate to first? The one with the Polynesian shirt cover, of course. Smells like…home!
I'm gonna come clean. I know stuff all about 'dub and bass,' except that to a screamer like me, the vocals always sound too restrained, too straight and mixed too far back. This CD by Dub Asylum is no exception, but I really like it!
'Meanstreets' and 'Close down' are my favourites though the 'Hine e hine' sample seemed pointless. 'Patience' gave me flashes of 'The Chooks', while 'What the funk' made me think of Reservoir Dogs. I'm a muso, but also very visual. 'Are you Ready' with its sweet vocals and 'Freddy,' with its industrial beats, are stand-outs.
I'm keeping this one by my CD player. It conjures up Sunday barbies in Grey Lynn, hanging with the white boys in their stylin' Polynesian shirts and heaps to imbibe. Bring it on this summer.

Happy days are here: some NZ dub to die for. Otago Daily Times, October 2002.
Kelly Alexander pumps up the jam with some of New Zealand's crispest dub tunes. On the menu: Dub Asylum, a remixed Black Seeds and 50Hz.

…. And now to Dub Asylum. Peter McLennan is the proud owner of Dub Asylum trading his former Hallelujah Picassos title for a funked-out model. This album moves gracefully through a multitude of genres, building on the foundations of the Picassos sound with lashings of dubbed-out basslines, some hip hop leanings, lavishly decorated with a twist of electronica.
It would appear that New Zealanders are a giving bunch and like to share their notoriety: featured on this collaboration is actor/singer Willa O'Neill, Nick Atkinson (of Supergroove stardom), Bobbylon and many more Kiwi artists.
Dub Asylum, The Seeds and 50Hz; if you haven't been paying attention, you will note that dub is definitely the look for the season. Go and get some, it's the new black.

Gary Steel, Metro magazine, November 2002.
Former Hallelujah Picassos man Peter McLennan's part-organic, part-cyber project lurches in so many directions that it's sometimes hard to get a grip. Aside from the obligatory 'shake yer booty' vocal urgings, however, this is a rip-roaringly enjoyable ride that keeps it as floral and fun-based as McLennan's Hawaiian shirts.

Martyn Pepperwell, NZ Musician magazine, December 2002
Peter McLennan, former member of Hallelujah Picassos, strikes back with a full length release under his musical alias Dub Asylum. A mashed up mixture of breakbeat-tinged dub with 'Ninjatunes' like downbeat panderings. Bringing in a slew of talented NZ musicians such as Tom Ludvigson, ex Picassos Bobbylon and John Pain, Sandy Mill and Nick Atkinson, McLennan has created a beautiful mixture of tunes which bring a much needed breaks/jungle element to NZ dub and reggae. Combining old hiphop loops, dubby guitar and keys, soulful vocals and clever sample arrangements, Dub Asylum takes the sound of the Picassos' and pushes it on a more electronic direction. Beautiful arrangement and composition do great things for 'She dubs me, she dubs me not', but what really impressed me was McLennan's ability to bring breakbeats, from hiphop to jungle into the mix without losing any of the reggae-influenced soul.

Steve Rendall, The Package, Dec 2002
The thing that strikes you most about this album on first listen is the wide variety of styles that Dub Asylum (ex-Hallelujah Picassos man Peter McLennan) fuses together - a particularly laid back cocktail of predominantly dub, mixed with some reggae-ish beats, and faint hints of trip-hop influences.
You've probably already heard this in the background of a cafe already and ultimately that's the ideal situation -relaxed vibes to fill in the blanks of conversation. As far as summer albums go, this has to be high on the list... Mix a drink, hit play, put your feet up, and add it to someone's Christmas list.

Murray Dixon, The Fix, #400, 11th - 17th October 2002
Smurf linguistics? As if doubt existed in what to expect from an outfit called Dub Asylum, the title of the album drops further clues. It's dub, or at least that particular twist on the genre that's become as much of the indigenous soundscape as the weirdasonics of our old pal the nectar-loving tui.
Picassos survivor Peter McLennan throws down some well selected loops and then goes at them furiously with a series of those boxes with heaps of knobs on them. Various famous or at least famous-ish mates drop by to provide vocals, remix duties etc - famous like Willa O'Neill, who strikes a blow for thespians everywhere by proving that it's not always a disaster when they pick up the mike....
It's nice to know Paddy Free's still lurking about doing that Pitch Black type ish too. As stated, the loops are nicely stitched up, yet some of the longer tracks drag for want of a change and could've stood to lose the last minute or so. Manages to hold its own at stupid volumes, though. Awright my little dubbers, I'm off to pick some dub-berries. Or some sh*t like that.

Gavin Bertram, Real Groove magazine, October 2002
Ex-Hallelujah Picassos guitarist Peter McLennan has been operating under the Dub Asylum moniker for around five years now. Previous to She Dubs Me, She Dubs Me Not was 1999's Dub Never Sleeps EP, a track from which ('R U Ready?') appeared on Antenna's If Lick Could Kill compilation from 2000. She Dubs Me… certainly has its beguiling moments and definitely attains a higher standard of both musical and production values than was previously heard...
'R U ready?' featuring McLennan's Picassos compadre Bobbylon on vocals, is one such (especially the Paddy Free (Pitch Black) mix), a crisp dancehall imbued dub-fest. Then there are the two tracks on which Sandy Mill sings, 'What the Funk' and 'Scratch n Sniff', where the SJD/Subware collaborator again gets to shine.
Elsewhere, there are some first class instrumentals, interesting soundbites from old records and over-effected dub-outs, as is the way of so many latter day dub artists... a good debut album from Dub Asylum.

Gemma Gracewood, She magazine, November 2002
SHE RECOMMENDS:DUB ASYLUM, SHE DUBS ME, SHE DUBS ME NOT
(ANTENNA)
Coming just in time for the onset of summer, the cover of this album is emblazoned with Hawaiian shirts, setting the mood for the music within. Dub Asylum is Aucklander Peter McLennan, a dub-loving musician-producer-writer-broadcaster who practically sleeps in his vast collection of floral shirts. This tremendous debut album mashes reggae, dub, roots and faster dance tracks together on a base of latin rhythms. Various local singers lend their voices to the album, including Peter's old Hallelujah Picassos mate Bobbylon, and actress Willa O'Neill. It's just right for the season.

SmokeCDs.com review
A former member of Auckland punk/ska/pop band Hallelujah Picassos, Peter McLennan, aka Dub Asylum, has been mashing things up with a distinctive Jamaican feel for ages, and brings his long time loves for reggae, dub, lounge music and Hawaiian shirts together on this fine first solo album.
As Dub Asylum, McLennan blends up a fresh and fruity selection of samples and real live instrumentation with a little help from guest musicians including Nick Atkinson (Supergroove), John Pain (Hallelujah Picassos) and Tom Ludvigson (A Trip To The Moon).
Fans of the exotic dubby downbeat sound of Sola Rosa will find plenty to like here, although Dub Asylum tries on a wider range of styles, adding a liberal sprinkling of guest vocalists (including Subware's Sandy Mills and actress Willa O'Neill and former Hallelujah Picassos bandmate Bobbylon) for pop appeal and even throwing in a handful of remixes for good measure ­by Pitch Black's Paddy Free and Jedeye.
Varied and very good, "She Dubs Me" is another great local downbeat release.

R U Ready (Paddy Free remix) single
Brent Cardy, Real Groove, September 2002
M ore audience-friendly music comes from Dub Asylum, in the form of R U Ready (Antenna), the first single taken from the forthcoming album She dubs me, she dubs me not. From the first bass blast, this is an instant dose of fast dub action, with all the wake-up mood-starter you'd expect from the title.

Leading a horse to water - Gathering Ambience
Graham Reid, The NZ Herald 1 September 2001
Leading a Horse to Water is... a seamless, 14 track collection of locals who performed at the Gathering 2000's ambient area and is compiled by John Heighes who organised that zone-out Zone. It features washes of sound by SJD (the dreamy acoustic guitar textures of Oscillator), Dub Asylum with a homage to the king of surf guitar on the leisurely chiming Dick Dale in Outer Space, Lotus (label boss Braddock, not to be confused with the singer of the same name) with the tui song minimalism of World Soup, and the quasi-Indonesian trance of Gamelan Padhang Moncar. This is ambient of the most gentle, whispered and diverse persuasion, and very attractive. Especially if coming down is where you want to be. ****

Chris Long, Rip It Up October/November 2001
Remember at the Gathering, when it all got a bit too much, so you went and had a lie down in the ambient zone. You sat there marvelling at ferals who seemed to have emerged from some cave-like dwelling. Well those songs are all together on Leading a Horse to Water. It's simply 14 sonic journeys that sometimes get lost, and sometimes find their way. SJD's Oscillator and Dub Asylum's mesmerising Dick Dale in Outer Space make for an interesting trip.

Mike Alexander, The Dominion 18 March 2001
The Leading a Horse to Water compilation features a selection of artists who performed in the ambient zone at The Gathering 2000. It's a mixed bag, though the compelling invisible rhythms of SJD, Barnard's Star, Bruno, Nerv and Dub Asylum's glorious spaghetti western Dick Dale in Outer Space are indispensable...

Nick Bollinger, The Listener 25 November 2000
This album will both confirm and contradict whatever generalisations you've heard about ambient music. You thought ambient music was unmelodic? Take in the classical cadences of Charlotte 90's Waiting to Wait. All electronic? Mandala by Gamelan Padhang Moncar is played entirely on ancient acoustic instruments, yet the mood of its hypnotic bells and chimes blends with the album's more synthetic compositions. Humourless? Try Dub Asylum's Dick Dale in Outer Space. Leading a Horse to Water shows you the scope of the genre and doesn't force you to drink.

If Licks Could Kill compilation
Gavin Bertram, Real Groove, June 2000
"... ex Hallelujah Picasso man Peter McLennan's new vehicle, Dub Asylum, offer 'R U Ready' a bassline-led rhythm monster, suggesting good things to come."

Dub Never Sleeps EP
Brent Cardy, Real Groove, November 1999
Dub Asylum is the post Hallelujah Picassos project from Peter McLennan, and the debut ep Dub Never Sleeps is a collection of his recordings to date. After a well classy sample intro from Basil Brush (!), the power house opener is the Bobbylon (also ex HP) voiced, popular student radio track Jump Along. The balance of Dub Never Sleeps features many other similarly talented guests, and mixes funk, a little hip hop and some excellent surf guitar dub. With a little finance, Dub Asylum's proposed album should be both a reality and a warm and welcome earful.


Johnnie Blades, Rip It Up, November 1999
The developing landscapes of dub continue to help people. Sounds that heal and teach don't have to be didactic to get a message across and that's what is Dub Never Sleeps.
Not enough good can be said of Dub Asylum's work here. The project of Peter McLennan with help from fellow Picassos Bobbylon and Johnnie Pain, and mixed by Joost Langeveld, works from a good many refreshing angles. Dub Never Sleeps is ushered in with the Tui whistle on Jump Along, and flows on like her liquid groove through a plethora of sound landscapes.
The trio of tracks that follow are almighty: Night of Chilly Blue has the sweetest European night prowl on its swing, and Dick Dale In Outer Space comes as a Latin dub plain, bolstered by pedal steel guitar. Then on R U Ready? Bobbylon emerges again over a beat as solid as Westmere brown. And there are more places on the map. McLennan's possibilities here are endless, like Paulette's vocals on Patience. Listen for the additional tinkering at Kog Transmissions.

Stephen Adams, Lava, November 1999
Dub Asylum is the moniker of Peter McLennan, ex Hallelujah Picasso and full time man about town. The Picasso connection is very evident throughout this one, not so much in musical style, as in personnel; HP's Bobbylon and Johnnie Pain do vocals and vibes respectively on a couple of tracks.
Produced mainly at McLennan's house as well as in studios around the city (BFM and Kog) where Mclennan could pull favours, Dub Never Sleeps is nonetheless way big on sound and quality. Dick Dale In Outer Space, a high rotate on BFM last year makes a welcome return, and the remaining seven tracks (count em!) are all fresh as. In case you haven't worked it out, it's dub, dub and more dub, reggaefied local lyrics and beats to burn.
Patience, featuring vocalist Paulette, is a fave of mine, but all the tracks are pretty damn strong.... Mclennan, take a bow. Can't wait for the album, and I'm not just saying that because you work here.