This was the first album he put out, before "Live At Stubbs" and it is truly what I saw a magazine article call it; "Hasidic Reggae". It has that slower reggae sound, not as poppy or upbeat as his albums since "Youth" and a message of or even to G-d that you sometimes don't find in his newer stuff. This is in no ways a knock on his latest albums, but you can hear on "Shake Off The Dust..." he was trying to find a way to combine his beliefs into a music that was often fairly religious itself, that being the reggae style of Peter Tosh or Bob Marley.

The version of "King Without A Crown" here is so much more soulful than the one on "Youth" and "Chop'Em Down", which he redid uptempo for "No Place To Be", is excellent.

Be forewarned: If you don't like the older reggae sounds of Jimmy Cliff, Burning Spear, or Toots & The Maytals then you might not like this one. But this is what got me into Matisyahu so I really think if you like him, you'll like this.

Its is a really good album. It is very spiritual like all of Matis' music. It is less refine but the message still comes out clear and loud. If you can find it buy it even if it may be a bit pricey.

This record is unbelievable. Amazing love for the lord in the jewish way. The most genuine and deepest product of Matisyahu.

I love the fact that his lyrics remain central to his style...about Adonai and His Torah! Great album to add to the collection

This album is truly a masterpiece. The low-dubbed, dancehall reggae sound displayed here is some of the best I have ever heard in reggae and all coming from a guy that looks like an ordained rabbi. After the original print of this album was stopped, I ran across a copy before the prices on ebay got outrageous. If you got into Matisyahu through one of his recent album than this might not be for you. There is not a pop song to be found on this disc and no 'wall-of-sound' production techniques used to overproduce a song. It literally sounds like it was recorded in a Jamaican fishermans basement (I can practically smell the jerk-chicken listening to this thing).

This is not the same Matisyahu of today, however; this was somebody who felt the music, felt the vibes, who had a message to speak and bad-ass beats to back it up. Now he just sounds like a bad Sean Paul rip-off(making poppy dance hits), which is sad, considering Shake Off The Dust...Arise! is a collection of music that I would gladly put on the same shelf with the best Bob/Damian Marley tracks. As a bonus, it also has the original, non-pop version of King Without A Crown, which is musical bliss.

If you only liked Matisyahu for "Live at Stubbs" or have a strong love for traditional dub and dancehall reggae then pick up this album, you will not be disappointed, it is worth every penny Amazon is charging. If you only like Matisyahu from his last couple albums, then this is probably not the music you are looking for.