Fullness

Fullness is the roots and dub reggae project of Gavin Sant, a drummer and instrumentalist from the United Kingdom who is based in Bournemouth on the south coast of England. His music combines organic live playing with digital production, and he describes it as roots reggae for soundsystem and stereo use, with a focus on conscious, uplifting lyrics and a spiritual outlook.

Background

Gavin Sant plays music from a young age, working in orchestras, choirs and bands across different styles before building a strong base in reggae. In 1998, he helps form the reggae band Dubheart with Mark and Nik Shepherd. After playing with the group for several years, he sets up a small home studio and begins developing his own recordings.

Recordings and releases

By around 2005, Sant records and mixes his first album for Dubheart, From the Mouth of the Lion, a five-track instrumental release with dub versions. He also continues building his own roots and dub material, sharing early work through reggae networking sites and gaining feedback from other listeners and artists.

Around 2008, he meets Izyah Davis and begins work on Arise, his debut album, which appears on Izyah Davis’s Hytal Bosrah Records on LP in 2010. Around the same period, he finishes soundproofing a new studio room and records the first vocal line there with Wayne Mcarthur on the track Walk of Life, issued on his own Karnatone label.

Session work and collaborations

In addition to his own productions, Fullness plays horns, drum kit and kete drum on other artists’ recordings. These include Paul Fox’s album for Michael Rose, Great Expectations, where he contributes horns, and Paul Fox’s own album Walls of Jericho, which includes the Fullness production No More Fire and a dub version.

Activity

Fullness remains associated with remix work, special dubplates, sessions and collaborations on roots music productions.