Jason Mraz & Shlomo – The incredible Voice

Jason Mraz jams with Brit beatbox artist and World Loop station Champion Shlomo. A trained percussionist & jazz drummer, he discovered his talent for beatboxing when he could not physically practice on the drums. He is the founder of the world’s first beatboxing choir, the Vocal Orchestra.

Together with Jason Mraz’s ever-carefree style, see how sparks fly between the two in this video.

They inspire (Pt 1 – Music)

The ones that inspire..

I feel alot. And when something makes me tick, I go straight to the roots to find out why.
I put my feelings into words so that I know myself better, to improve myself.
Thus, this entry is an insight to what moves me. As the post is rather long, this is part one, music segment. Part two will be about other people, not so music related.

I love (rock) music, and to me, one of the most important elements that makes a piece of music are the drum rhythms. These Wicked, Melodic Drummers have made me go crazy trying to figure out the complex yet melodious grooves in their songs.

Branden Steineckert (ex-The Used)

Hardcore music doesn’t just mean intensive double bass pedals and cymbal crashes.
The songs are seldom in the usual 4/4 or eighths rock beat, rhythms are more often played in not-so-usual phrasing accompanied with mind-boggling fills when you least expect it.
From the first album to the second (before he left the band), the skills displayed in the tracks are the evidence that he is not your average drummer in an emo band.
Sadly, he’s now left the band to become drummer of Rancid, a band which I’d say plays ol’ sch skapunk and poppunk.

Dave Powell (Emery)

Another drummer from a post-hardcore band. Drum grooves always melodic, he is just so able to capture the mood of the song and inject some kinda drug in you to move with it and feel it.
Love him for almost the same reasons I love Branden Steineckert, if not more.

Benny Greb

The most creative and talented drummer I’ve seen. Of the lot, he should be the most melodic of them all. He produced his own album filled with his own drum grooves, solos, instrumental pieces, and even his own scat singing! How creative and talented can one get?????? And I haven’t even mentioned his live drumming clinics, where he incorporates handplaying on the drums. ‘Nuff said.

Adrian Young (of now defunct No Doubt)

Drummer of the favourite band of my growing up years. His versatility in genres is displayed as the band transited from ska, to rock/pop over the years. If I could get a trumpet player, I’d definitely wanna try out No Doubt’s songs. When I listen to the tracks over and over, I learnt, playing drums is all about making the music fun!

My dream is to catch any of these Awesomest bands live. And though I’ve been listening to them for years, I can’t get enough still:

Emery

Mentioned earlier in the section about Dave Powell, I love them for the drums – PLUS the vocals and everything else! Though they scream a little, their vocals are superb, especially the harmonising parts, it just sends goosebumps sometimes. There was even a song, that had music in 4/4 and vocals in triplet! That was the first song that made me fall in love with them, “Ponytail Parades“. I’ve never looked back since.
Others:

• “Playing with fire” WICKED WICKED WICKED opening with the drums!!!
• “Listening to Freddie Mercury” very funny and interesting pop/hardcore infused song.
• “The note which a chord is built” fun for the drummers, opening guitar riffs sound like something from Blink, and it goes down into atmospheric keys, and then building up again.
• All their songs!!!!! Good vocals, Wicked drums, Calm and consistent keys, Interesting lyrics!
  

Underoath

My first favourite post-hardcore band. Got hooked listening because they were from a Christian music label and also because of “Some will seek forgiveness, Others escape“. This song is a MUST-LISTEN for all those who has a bad impression of screamo bands. It is guaranteed to change your perspective FOR GOOD! If not I buy u a drink of kopi….
Very soft and sweet vocals from a guy, despite a screamo band. They don’t just scream, they sing too.

The Used (I refuse to show any photo of them without Branden.)
Love them Branden Steineckert days. So, I’d never get to watch them live..with the drummer I go crazy for. I doubt the new drummer can match up to Branden playing the older songs too.
Great to listen tracks include:

• “Buried myself alive” (for a period of time I kept hearing this played by local kids in studios and at gigs) If you’re sad and angry – this song makes you bitter.
• “Taste of Ink“
• “Blue & Yellow“
• “It’s hard to say” Freaking sad – my ex wrote a note containing the lyrics of this song after we broke up..
• “Smother me” DAMN TAEH male singer, but what a romantic way to express your love to your partner SMOTHER ME!!!!

Every song of theirs have an interesting song to tell, but they can be really vulgar and SAD sometimes.

Red Hot Chilli Peppers

Great performers, killa bassist, funkdrummer, lyrics that don’t mean a thing. If they are ever in a gig near your town, you HAVE to go for it. Too bad there’s no opportunity for me yet. And it doesn’t seem like their on tour at all, in any part of the world (website listing). These Grammy-award winning buggers rock so hard they make you feel like moshing just listening and watching them on DVD.
Love love them, love the mellow guitar and vocals:

• “Scar Tissue”
• “The Zephyr Song”
• “How Long”
• “By the Way”

Nirvana

Watching them live is impossible now, since the lead has departed the world, and the band’s since disbanded. The drummer, Dave Grohl has now become Foo Fighter’s lead instead.
Anyway, they brought grunge mainstream! They wrote their own songs, were high on drugs, could rock an audience with an acoustic set. The one hit that everybody remembers them for: “Smells like teen spirit“.

Funnily, this is how the song came about:
“Kathleen Hanna, the lead singer of the group Bikini Kill, gave Cobain the idea for the title when she spray painted “Kurt Smells Like Teen Spirit” on his bedroom wall after a night of drinking and spraying graffiti around the Seattle area. In his pre-Courtney Love days, Cobain went out with Bikini Kill lead singer Tobi Vail, but she dumped him. Vail wore Teen Spirit deodorant, and Hanna was implying that Cobain was marked with her scent. Cobain didn’t know it when he wrote the song, but Teen Spirit is a brand of deodorant marketed to young girls. Kurt thought Hanna was complimenting him on his rebellious spirit. Sales of Teen Spirit deodorant shot up when this became a hit, even though it is never mentioned in the lyrics.“

People remember it so much that Moulin Rouge the movie adapted the tune and part of the lyrics of the song, 10 years after “Smells like teen spirit” was released, and seven years after Cobain died.

And Of course, I root for them because of Kurt Cobain, who I believed died of sabotage. (Contrary to the many stories that said he committed suicide, the thing is he couldn’t and wouldn’t, because he…ok the story can go on here..but I shall stop)

All that talk about drummers and bands, I almost missed out Jason Mraz!
The special thing about him is rapping-singing kinda style, which he came up with himself. Isn’t that darn creative. Moreover, only he can handle all that tongue-twisting!
Simple nice tunes yet marvelous rhythm on guitar. Have him in your ears in the sleepy mornings, in the lazy afternoons, at night before you sleep, it wouldn’t hurt.

To be continued… (Pt 2 – Icons, Style)