AN in-demand musician for over 30 years, Paul Kastick has played drums in some of reggae’s top bands including 809, and for top artists such as Shaggy, Big Mountain and Maxi Priest.
Kastick has also quietly established himself as a producer, guiding songs by Big Mountain, Tessanne Chin and Danglin. He is determined to make a name in that realm with his GrooveGalore Production label.
“The focus of GrooveGalore Production is to facilitate top-class music productions for any artiste interested and to also take on new artistes that I may find interesting and worthy of my personal investment as a producer,” he said.
Kastick has been producing songs for nearly 20 years, one of his best known releases being Hideaway, Chin’s 2011 breakout hit. Diana King, Ky-Mani Marley, Shaggy and Freddie McGregor have also recorded songs for him.
GrooveGalore Production officially launched in 2018 with Let me Love U, a song by Chin and deejay Honorebel. Say I, which features Kenyan singer Chiluba, Maxi Priest and Danglin, is also on the cards, so too Show Me by Canadian singer Belinda Brady.
“My productions also vary in the sense that I love to fuse different styles and genres in most of my work and being a drummer and programmer also, I tend to keep an ear to stuff that’s going on internationally in faraway countries that I get to visit on tour,” Kastick explained. “I’m a rocker to heart, so I’m always kind of tweaking stuff differently when it comes to how my drums sound, hence the way Tessanne’s Hideaway drums and guitars came across in that mix.”
From Montego Bay, Kastick has been a musician since his years at Herbert Morrison Technical High School. He developed his skills playing his hometown’s hotel circuit before being recruited by singer Desmond “Desi Roots” Young to join the 809 Band which included stalwarts like saxophonist Dean Frasier, trombonist Nambo Robinson and guitarist Winston “Bo Pee” Bowen.
Since then, he has held the drum role for Shaggy, Big Mountain, Maxi Priest and Diana King. With that type of experience, Kastick believes the time is right to establish himself as a producer, even as he continues to tour.
“It’s been actually easier (to produce while touring) in the past 15 years due to the technological advances that has been made, for example mobile equipment and all recording stuff has gotten smaller and less expensive,” he said. “Also, with WeTransfer and Dropbox, files can now be sent all over the world in a few minutes; it’s still not the same as being directly in a recording studio ‘cause you’re constantly moving around when on tour, but it’s still way better than it was to get stuff done years ago.”
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