When outsiders fall for Jamaican culture, they often fall hard. Witness Sean Sullivan of Brooklyn's Sam Champion, whose reggae-rock alter ego is convincing enough to have a spinoff line of hemp clothing. Echoing older U.K. fusions (Clash, English Beat), he ponders love and escape over meticulous ska and roots grooves, adding twists like a no-wave guitar outro on "Coco" (a ringer for the Specials' "A Message to You Rudy"). Sullivan is also starring in Wah Do Dem, an indie film about a hapless white kid stranded in Trenchtown. Co-star Norah Jones joins him here for a sweet rub-a-dub duet: It's indie rock flexing its global citizenship.

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WILL HERMES

(Posted: Aug 18, 2009)