But wait! Before you dismiss the album as total blasphemy, consider that the songs on Dreams of Freedom:Ambient Translations of Bob Marley in Dub deserve some honest attention.

The 11 songs being remixed are some of the most revered reggae classics ever written. Producer and remixer Bill Laswell has created a worthy, modernistic new twist on Marley’s legacy.

One need only hear the church organ introduction to the somber fan favorite No Woman No Cry to begin to appreciate the way Laswell could alter such a perfect ballad without sacrificing the powerful meaning of the simplistic yet preaching phrases (Everything’s gonna be all right).

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On the epic opening track Rebel Music (3 O’ Clock Roadblock) is where Laswell really finds the knack for the metamorphosis of Marley’s songs. The song is 10 minutes of unearthly sounds mixed with the steady rhythm section of the Wailers.

But on songs like Is This Love, the original format of the song is forfeited to make room for overemphasized rhythmic rendering.

The dub in the title refers to the accentuated bass and drum tracks, leaving the rhythm section to carry many of the songs. This may be the reason Marley’s vocals are turned into a mere backing voice.

After all, it was Marley’s voice and his revolutionary words that made him the most powerful force in reggae music, which may be the one reason Dreams of Freedom does not succeed in whole.

But roll a cigarette and dim the lights anyway because Bob has never sounded like this before.