Seeed

by Jason Ankeny
 
German reggae ensemble Seeed formed in Berlin in 1998 -- a product of the city's nascent dancehall scene, their sprawling, multi-ethnic, and multilingual lineup is comprised of vocalists Pierre &Enuff& Balgorry, Demba &Ear& Nabé, and Frank &Eased& Dellé; DJ Luke; guitarist &Rudeboy& Rudy; bassist Tobsen Cordes; keyboardist &Dubmaster& Reibold; saxophonist Moritz Delgado; trombonist Jerome &Tchamp& Bugnon; drummer Based; and percussionist Alfie Trowers. Opening slots for visiting headliners including Buju Banton established Seeed's reputation as a dynamic live act, and over time their set lists -- initially made up of classic reggae covers including &The Tide Is High& and &Police and Thieves& -- began to include original material as well. Seeed issued their debut LP, New Dubby Conquerors, in 2001, scoring a massive German pop hit with the single &Dickies B.& Traditional reggae gave way to dancehall on the 2003 follow-up, Music Monks, which yielded its own smash, &Water Pumpee.& Atlanta soul savant Cee-Lo guested on Seeed's third LP, the 2005 release Next!