Eight Reasons Why Steel Pulse Are the Best Reggae Act You’ll See This Spring

1. The Road Is Their Second Home Steel Pulse continue to burn rubber and sweep up larger audiences with each tour. As a testament to their live shows, fans across the globe flock to hear the legendary reggae group deliver politically conscious lyrics with dancehall beats. 2. They Were the First Non-Jamaican Act to Win the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album An impressive feat for a band part of a genre universally associated with the sunny isle of Jamaica, Steel Pulse were the first reggae band from a cloudy British inner city to win Best Reggae Album for Babylon the Bandit in 1986. 3. They Won Over English Punks One of the first groups of people to support Steel Pulse was the English punk scene, a notoriously difficult bunch to impress. But British punk bands were the first to give Steel Pulse a chance to spread their music. “Now the punks at the time were being recognized as rebels fighting out against society. If England said they wanted red, they would say, ‘No, we want the opposite color.’ So the punks were just totally against the system. The fact that the system didn’t play any reggae music led the punks to say, ‘We’re going to be the leading act because we’re the in thing right now, and we’re going to have reggae bands opening for us at these venues.’ And that’s how we got our feet in the door.” —David Hinds 4. They Have Been Playing Music Together for More Than Four Decades The bond they have is a result of the countless albums and tours they have embarked upon since 1975. These 41 years of collaboration have allowed Steel Pulse to have one of the tightest and most engaging live sets in reggae. 5. They Were the First Reggae Band Ever to Be Invited to Perform at a Presidential Inauguration In 1992, during Bill Clinton’s first presidential inaugural, Steel Pulse were invited to entertain crowds celebrating his first moments in office. A famous sax man, President Clinton recognizes Steel Pulse’s considerable talent. 6. Transport Yourself to the Secluded Island You Wish You Were On Having to choose between paying the rent or escaping to an island oasis often ends in disappointment. But you can still submerge yourself in the tropical sounds of Steel Pulse. 7. Reggae and the Month of April Go Hand in Hand Ring in 4/20 early with Steel Pulse’s hip-swaying jams. But please remember, there is no smoking allowed in Brooklyn Bowl. “Rastafari and its inextricable relationship with cannabis are recognized everywhere on earth, and there are Rastafarian communities on every continent.” —Cannabis Culture  8. We’ve Had Our Fair Share of the Winter Blues Spring makes us all feel good and so does reggae music.