Westgate Under Fire is the third studio album by Welsh ragga metal band Dub War, released on 5 August 2022 via Earache Records. It is the first album of new material by the band since Wrong Side of Beautiful in 1996.
Background After their split in 1999, 3/4 of the band went on to form Skindred, however only frontman Benji Webbe remained by 2004. In 2014, the group reunited for a limited number of shows with Mikee Gregory on live drums.Dub War reunite for Download Festival 2015 Virtual Festivals. 24 May 2014. Retrieved 2 June 2015.Nicky Wire and Newport band Dub War to feature at Velvet Coalmine festival , South Wales Argus. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2015. This was followed in March 2016 with the single "Fun Done"Listen to a brand new song by Dub War TeamRock. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2016. and "Making a Monster" in October that year. This was initially planned to be part of a series of singles that would eventually culminate in a full album through independent label Saint Ringland Records.Skindred's Benji Webbe has reformed Dub War and plans to release 12 records , Wales Online. 19 March 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
However, these plans eventually fell through until 2022, when the group announced Westgate Under Fire, inspired by the events of the Newport Rising, and important moment in the Chartist movement. The group reunited with Earache Records to release the album, and recruited a host of drummers to perform on the album alongside Gregory. The first single, "Blackkk Man", was released on 2 March 2022. The track was inspired by the murder of George Floyd and subsequent protests. DUB WAR To Release First Album Of New Material In Over 25 Years Blabbermouth.net. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022. Previous stand-alone single "Fun Done" is included on the album, while "Making a Monster" was renamed "Mary Shelley".
Track listing
Personnel
Dub War Benji Webbe – vocals Jeff Rose – guitars Richie Glover – bass guitar
Additional musicians Mikee Gregory – drums Ranking Roger – vocals on "War Inna Babylon" Spike T. Smith – drums on "Art of War" Roy Mayorga – drums on "Reveal It" Dave Chavarri – drums on "Bite Back" Jamie Miller – drums on "Crying Clowns" Mikey Doling – guitar on "Crying Clowns" Mike Bordin – drums on "Get Back Up" Tanner Wayne – drums on "Celtic Cross"
Production Richard "Action" Jackson – production, mixing Rick Will – mastering Lord Hagos Bryan "Chuck" New
Artwork Artcore – album cover art
Charts + Chart performance for Westgate Under Fire Chart (2022) Peakposition
References