West Bank — A musical bank of talent

THEY'VE been compared to the Fugees, yet others would swear they're straight up Reggae dancehall. But then again, others liken their sound to that of jazz and R&B.

The band West Bank will tell you though that the group is "a musical bank of talent that represents the West Indies as well as the whole Western hemisphere".

Their mission is to create a whole new sound with the ever present Reggae vibe. According to lead band member, Joe West: "We all have a genuine love for reggae music. Growing up, we all were drawn to music by reggae icons like Black Uhuru, Burning Spear Toots but we also draw influence from more recent artistes like Black Eyed Peas and Morgan Heritage."

Hailing from different backgrounds, band members are drawing on each others sound to create a niche for themselves in the very competitive field.

Joel Isaacs, aka Joe West, is no stranger to the music industry. Behind the scenes as writer and producer, he enjoyed success managing two popular groups, ARP and Emerge, in Jamaica.

Patrick Livingstone, aka Mr Millennium, has written, performed and perfected various forms of reggae and calypso music in different venues and was lighting up the dancehall scene before finding a home with West Bank. Jodaine Penrose, aka Jody Jode, has been singing since she was seven years old and according to Joe, she "blends right in with the group with her soulful voice".

Since their emergence on the scene, the band has released singles such as Never Find Another, Swing That and My Life. They have also released videos for all these singles which has been creating a buzz for them in and outside of the States.

The New Jersey-based band is focused on "conquering their part of the world first" and as such they have been doing a lot of shows in that state as well as New York, Philadelphia and Jamaica - home to the reggae movement.

West Bank is now putting the finishing touch on their soon to be released album Initial Deposit. According to Joe West the album will be "one of the best musical investments ever made".

Looking ahead, the band is hoping to hit the Jamaican stage in the summer.

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