The Aggrolites

The Aggrolites in concert on June 17, 2026 at 5:30 PM at Bal Chavaux.

It was 2002. Singer Jesse Wagner and organist Roger Rivas, both freshly out of their respective bands, joined forces to form the dirty-reggae quintet The Aggrolites. With a sound that blends Kingston and Motown in equal measure, the band turned the heads of discerning music lovers around the world, not to mention a host of legends — from the old guard (Phyllis Dillon, Derrick Morgan) to the more recent generation (Tim Armstrong) — who recruited them for collaborations.

Over the following decade, the Los Angeles band toured and recorded relentlessly, releasing five full-length albums while spending nearly 250 days a year on the road. For a time, it seemed The Aggrolites were everywhere — and that’s because they truly were.

Then, unexpectedly: silence. The Aggrolites entered a long period of hibernation after an especially gruelling tour in support of the 2011 album Rugged Road, and suddenly the scene was left without its dirty-reggae representatives.

While it took nearly a decade for The Aggrolites to regain creative cohesion, it took only a fraction of that time to record the music — the band recorded all the basic rhythm tracks for REGGAE NOW! in a single day in early 2018.

Skinhead reggae is hard-hitting music.