TOMMY FAR EAST

One for the vinyl junkies

Jamaican record collector extraordinaire, Tommy Far East, was faced with a difficult task of playing in between two high energy bands, for a late night set at the always energetic Palace of Wonder stage. Swedish gypsy punk rockers Räfven had just finished shaking the palace to its limits and sweat was literally dripping from the walls.

As people oozed out of the palace, Tommy stepped up to bring a little heat of his own. Tommy Far East runs Far East Records and regularly puts on events supporting and promoting classic Jamaican ska and early reggae. The palace wasn’t quite as packed during his set, but this worked well for Tommy and his box of 45s. Unlike aforementioned gypsy punk, Jamaican rocksteady isn’t as conducive to being in a sweaty mob of people jumping in unison as the floor wobbles below. As with most forms of Jamaican music, the dance plays a major role. With this extra space, people were afforded the freedom to bust a move to classic tunes, some over 50 years old.

In his hour long set, Tommy moved through loads of 45s, from classic singalongs to obscure scratchy skankers. Tommy doesn’t always mix smoothly, but often drops tune to tune, while giving a brief intro or bigging up a classic Jamaican singer of yesteryear. All his talking was in English with a thick Jamaican patois, which added to the vibe.

As things started winding down and people began pouring in for the Kitty, Daisy and Lewis set about to come, Tommy took this chance to assault the crowd with the biggest gems from his record box. He played one-offs, rare tunes and finished with a ‘Far East’ themed dub plate. He kept it strong the whole way through and for a vinyl junkie like myself I couldn’t have asked for more, besides a longer set time.