In the following series, I am going to talk about various genres of music. But 1st, let me provide some backround on myself to explain where my perspectives come from.
I have been an active musician since childhood. My parents have pictures of me as a toddler turning anything i could find into a guitar or drum set. When i was around 9 or 10, I began takig guitar lessons. At age 11, I gave my 1st public performance. I also began to do some local theater at this age and stayed active in it thru my teens. At age 14, I played in my 1st band. It was a lousy one, like most bands are at that age. We tried to cover bands like rush and Zeppelin and so forth, with varied success.
Later in my teens, and as my musical skills developed, I began playing jazz bass in a big band. At the same time, I was playing guitar and bass in a hardcore punk rock band that enjoyed way more success than it's talent would suggest. That band introduced me to much of my early "live gigging" experience, 1st studio experience and touring (playing out of town) experience.
In my 20's , I fell in love with some more acoustic styles like folk and blugrass. I began doing solo acoustic work and playing out as such. In the same years, i played in a heavy metal cover band, a wedding band and jammed with all kinds of different players in just about every style you could imagine.
As the 90's rolled in, I formed 2 bands. the 1st started as an acoustic trio, "Stringdance", which like Dylan, eventually evolved into a 4 piece electric progressive pop act. The other one was a psychedelic jam band called "N2O" and later "Schrodinger's Box." Both bands lasted about 2 years and kept me pretty busy from around 89 thru 92.
In 1992, I moved to Delaware and got distracted by life. By then, however, I had gotten to know quite a few artists and players around the country and had many opportunities to sit in on stage or in the studio with many of them as the years went by. I also eventually did some more live solo playing. IN the late 90's, when I bought my 1st real home, I began building my own home studio. Today, it is all computer based and mostly digital. I get to record and play with musicians who play all sorts of styles, from the mellowest to the loudest.
I truly love all styles and genres of music. I've played most of em, and listen to almost all of them. About the only things I don't really listen to is foreign language vocal music. From Opera to pop, I have to admit that when the words are in a foreign tongue, and I don't understand them, I have a harder time listening to it. I still appreciate it, but usually will choose something I can understand fully, including the words. Of course, there are exceptions to that.
Now that ya'll know a little about me, let's talk about some music. I am going to start with talking about the most popular form of music out there today, "hip-hop." But eventually, I plan to cover everything from folk to punk, offering my perspectives on what is good and bad about the genres. I hope to discuss these topics on a variety of levels, from the theory of the genre to more "fan based" issues. So I hope both musicians and music lovers will feel comfortable in participating.
I sure hope you enjoy:)