House of Marley’s Bag of Rhythm On Sale – Bringing Back The Boombox

Some of you reading this blog are old enough to remember when mobile technology meant a boom box that you could fit on your shoulder and carry around. If you were strong enough, of course.

These days we’re all expected to keep our tunes to ourselves, though some youths rebel by playing the music from their smartphone speakers really loud, annoying all the people on public transportation with crappy, tinny music.

If you’re going to do all that, you need to go old school with it.

House of Marley is all about the old school charm mixed with new technology and Earth-friendly materials. The apex of this is the new Bag of Rhythm, a new take on the boombox idea. You can carry this one on your shoulder, too. The strap is way more comfortable than the boxy edges of old.

This isn’t just a good-looking showpiece. Oh heck no. I was party to several jam sessions at CES when this thing appeared and the audio quality is appropriately booming, bass-heavy, and bombastic.

The dock in the center connects to an iPhone or iPod touch like any other iSpeaker. There’s also a cable for connecting other handhelds and a pouch on the side for hiding the shameful non-iDevice away.

You get two sets of handles for easy carrying, but once you set the Bag of Rhythm down it can sit speakers facing forward without the iPhone falling out. It runs on a rechargeable battery that can be topped up at home or in the car.

The entire thing is made from recycled (or recyclable) materials. Yes, that’s real wood you see surrounding the speakers. The bag bits are made from cotton canvas.

The Bag of Rhythm costs $349. You can order it today from House of Marley’s website for delivery starting next week.