Review: Damian Marley Keeps Family Legacy Alive on ‘Stony Hill’

Between LPs with Nas and Mick Jagger, and more
recent tracks with Jay-Z (4:44‘s “Bam”) and Skrillex (“Make It
Bun Dem”), Damian Marley (a.k.a. Jr. Gong) has been his late father’s
rangiest ambassador. His first solo album in a decade is an inspiring 18-track
collection, flexing authority on roots jams and dancehall bangers, political
meditations (“Walking home a youth gets killed/Police free to shoot at
will,” he sings on “Slave Mill,” with his dad’s indomitable
ruefulness) and come-ons (the Drake-ian “Grown and Sexy”). It’s a
reminder that reggae remains a potent pop force, especially when it’s in the hands
of a master.