How do I even begin to explain a project so insanely diverse as Estradasphere? This band crosses and mixes more genres than any other I know. One song could start out with some of the most non-sensical, heaviest metal you’ve heard and smoothly transition to a classical jazz piece followed by Icelandic salsa. Ok, I made that last genre up. But it’s no exaggeration when I say Estradasphere is the most unique band I’ve yet posted on. To the common listener, this music may be immediately brushed off as silly or a joke, but to a musician or Obnoxious Listener who understands the purpose behind it… they just might see pure brilliance.

These guys clearly have an obsession with 8-bit video games. We’ve all heard video game covers before and probably think we’ve heard them all. But Estradasphere has the best re-arrangment of a video game track I’ve yet heard. Super Buck II is a big band jazz arrangement of the theme from Super Mario Bros. 2. It’s so good that everyone I’ve played it for knows they’ve heard it somewhere, but rarely can put their finger on it because it sounds like a legit song.

I know for sure this band is not for everyone. Honestly, I have to be in the right mood to listen to this album all the way through. However, this album is shows incredible compositional skill. If you thought it was impressive to hear Opeth go from death metal to an acoustic classical guitar arrangement, just wait until you’ve heard the clip in this post. The thing about Buck Fever (2001) is that you have no way of predicting what you’ll hear next. The concept behind this band was to collect some incredibly talented musicians from as many backgrounds as possible and just see what happens.

I don’t know how this many conflicting musical interests could stick together for so long without making it fun and even comical at times. You have to listen past the ridiculousness, but also along with that, remember that musicians are supposed to enjoy what they’re doing. So why can’t they have some fun along with it.  While all of their releases have pushed the limits of what we call genres, not all of them were as goofy and comical as many of the tracks on Buck Fever. And the tracks chosen for this post aren’t the goofiest on the album, as some tracks sporadically toss in the sound of Mario catching some coins or dialogue themed around hunting deer. There’s even a track with a small slice of the theme from 90210. All things aside, Estradasphere is made of some remarkable musicians and help lighten up the topic of Obnoxious Listening. They’re definitely worth some incidental attention, at the very least. Personally, I can’t get enough of the jazz rendition of Super Mario Bros. 2.

Estradasphere | mySpace | Wikipedia | facebook

Granted, Kanye West might be one of the cockiest emcess and producers in the game. He might hog the spotlight at times and throw a fit occasionally if something doesn’t go his way. He also may brag about things that yet have not happened. I’m here to tell you - don’t disregard that. He is who he is and he has done what he has done because of his character.

• Made less known or underground emcees, popular. Emcees like Common, Lupe Fiasco, Consequence, Rhymefest, etc. Before their collaboration and work with Kanye through either production and/or collaboration, these artists were grinding, but never popular or wealthy. This changed significantly after Kanye’s influence.
• Made unknown stars, stars. Take all the R&B signers and musicians that he’s teamed up and/or helped raise awareness to: John Legend, Jamie Foxx, Dwele, Lily Allen, Estelle, Syleena Johnson, etc. These were signers that very little people knew about and very few artists were collaborating with. After their role in Kanye’s music + life, they are going on sold out tours and making a well known career for themselves.
• Made consciousness cool. There has not been one single conscious/obnoxious emcee who has sold as many albums or sold out more seats in a single venue as Kanye did with Graduation (2007) and his Glow In The Dark Tour. Kanye didn’t start the consciousness movement, nor will I say his contributions to conscious music are greater than others. But he did make it ok and cool to have music that was well produced and have great lyrics, a combination that wasn’t found in hip hop for decades.
• Began the roots for a racial revolution. Who can forget Kanye’s appearance on the news with Mike Myers talking about the relief efforts in Katrina? And when he blurted out, “George Bush hates black people.” That single statement sparked conversation between hip hop radio stations and tv channels to bring the Katrina tragedy to light in a perspective that simply was not being talked about. After that, there have been numerous public conversations about race and its implication in today’s politics. Just check out Bil
• Began the roots for a cultural revolution. Kanye made it “ok” and actually cool to question the acts of government and society on a public level. Though it was already being done by hundreds of artists, politicians, and teachers - Kanye did it in front of a bigger audience. Whether it was through his lyrics (Black Panthers being stopped by President Ronald Reagan, Magic Johnson curing AIDS), his public announcements (outburst on MTV and its favor towards skin color), orhis performances (Grammy’s & VMA’s), Kanye promote conversations and challenges that had to be addressed. That’s something big time and pop artists don’t do because they know they could lose thousands of fans at a time (look at Dixie Chicks!).

Kanye’s drive and motivation have taken him from a small studio producer to one of the most well respected and popular emcees in hip hop. When everyone told him that it couldn’t be done or that his skills were not that good, he took the challenge and excelled. When you have that many people in your life (whether family, friends, acquaintances) that keep telling you the impossibility of something, it manifests in the mind. So when Kanye boasts and he screams from the rooftop that he’s the best, its a self expression of his mind. It wouldn’t matter to him if he screamed to 10 people or 10 million people. He does it for himself, not others. And I believe a person needs that to release the thoughts of imperfection in your mind. Only then can someone (Kanye in this case) feel at ease and feel at peace. That’s how I view his so called “bad” attributes.

In summary, Kanye’s contributions are vast and his impact to hip hop music even larger. What really opened my eyes and really got me to understand this even more was a dead honest and open testimonial by Sean “P Diddy” Combs. He put it the best and I can’t find a better way to end this post. Thanks Diddy!

Maynard James Keenan is hands down, one the most influential singers in rock.  You might not like the music or you might just be morally opposed to liking Tool because you think it’s cool to dislike something just because of its followers, but you can’t deny Maynard’s voice is nothing shy of immaculate.  He is articulate, incredibly confident, and more importantly, sings for the band as a whole rather than stealing the spotlight.  Most singers tend to write their lyrics and melodies before the rest of the band or based on some guitar riffs.  In Tool’s case, the songs are almost entirely arranged before Maynard adds any vocals or lyrics.  And yet his vocals fit so perfectly.  I could go on for pages about Maynard, but I’m pretty sure most of our readers are already aware of him.  For anyone who has somehow never heard Maynard, I’ve chosen clips from Sober and H.  As an aside, I think their live version of Pushit has his best work as a singer.  Maynard was also the singer for A Perfect Circle, and he also did a collaboration track with the Deftones on White Pony, Passenger. If you look hard enough, you’ll find him in some other projects/collaborations.

Billy White is far less known than Maynard, but is arguably just as talented.  Unfortunately, he just hasn’t found a band that has taken off yet.  You may recall the first post I ever wrote was on the band Shun.  Billy was their singer and has since had a couple other projects.  So far I still think Shun was the best band he’s had as a whole, but then again, there are only two tracks by Midnight Radio in Nashville.  I really hope that his latest project completes the album.  As I’ve said before, it’s pretty easy to compare Billy to Mayard, but Billy has more emotion and more easily deciphered lyrics, in my opinion.  If you like the clip below, please check out our old post on Shun and then do whatever is necessary to get a hold of Shun’s only CD, Michael in Reign.

Scott Weiland might be a really weird guy (at least on stage) and he might continue to have drug problems, but damn does he have a good voice.  I can’t say I really got into the Velvet Revolver, but his work with the Stone Temple Pilots was great.  Like the previous singers I’ve mentioned, he has a lot of confidence behind his voice, but he also has a lot of diversity.  Maynard has some diversity, but not as much as Scott Weiland.  Although, that might just be due to the music behind the voice rather than the singers’ abilities.  I’ll admit Scott is among the weaker of those listed in this post strictly as a singer alone, but Scott really knows to how to tap into the mood and feel of the song and is able to adapt his voice accordingly.

Amy Lee.  I can’t wait to hear my friends ridicule me for this one.  But screw you guys, Amy Lee has an absolutely amazing voice and I’m not afraid to admit I like Evanescence.  There aren’t nearly enough female singers in rock these days, and no, I didn’t pick her just because she’s practically the only female singer I like.  Amy has an exceptional range and, I keep coming back to this, confidence.  The key to being a great singer is having the confidence to be one; it make’s all the difference in the world.  Not that the band she has now isn’t good, but I’d really love to hear her in a band that doesn’t seem to be carried by her.

Jeff Buckley had an unquestionably beautiful voice.  Unfortunately, he died young having only released really only one album.  His music isn’t entirely up my alley, but his voice was too beautiful and pure to ignore.  His music is far more mellow than the rest I’ve mentioned, and I wouldn’t normally write much about bands within this genre, but I’m sure you’ll agree Jeff Buckley was a great singer.  I didn’t use it in the clip, but he also did a really nice rendition of Hallelujah.

Like many youngins’, he simply lacks the education that we got. The education that the real creators of hip hop are people like DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious 5, Run DMC, Boogie Down Production, James Brown, Grandmaster Kaz, Busy Bee, and several more just like them. But I won’t blame the kid for his ignorance.

Instead, I want to educate all the Down South crunk music fans that what they consider good music “cuz the beat is good” doesn’t really work or make logical sense. The beat is a beat and nothing else. It doesn’t make the songs good, and its actually some of the simplest drum machine beats you can find tweaked in a way that it pops in your club speakers. It takes little skill to make and produce and it lacks creativity. And the lyrical content of the songs lack story telling, lack metaphors, and lack smartness that rap has come to honor.

I have to blatantly admit that I have been one of the biggest Haters of down south hip hop since its evolution into popular music. I have stopped dancing all together when its played at clubs, I quickly change the song if I hear it playing in a car or friend’s house without consent, and I’ve been known to scorn it out loud in front of several people. To me, the genre of music is what I consider the equivalent of the Plague. It spreads quickly, people not educated or conscious will get infected with it, and it has the ability to destroy the mind. That’s how bad I considered it and that’s how much I hated it.

Then I took a step back and asked, is it really all down south hip hop or is it just radio-popular crunk music? The answer is obvious and I want to highlight and credit the artists from “down south” that really have made a solid contribution to the art and music of hip hop. Their names are not Lil Jon, Young Jock, Soulja Boy, or whatever other wack ass name you can think of. Their names are:

The Dungeon Family. Consisting of groups and members like Outkast (Big Boi and Andre 3000 solo as well), Goodie Mob, Cee-lo, Sleepy Brown - the collective has brought ingenuity through a combination of funk and soul. Their more popular songs like “Hey Ya”, “Bombs Over Baghdad”, “Ms. Jackson” hit the top of billboard chats. But its songs like “Player’s Ball” from Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994) and “ATLiens” from ATLiens (1996) that got me to become a huge fan.

Little Brother. This duo consisting of Phonte and Rapper Big Pooh has graced the underground hip hop scene for over 5 years now. They came up with their group’s name because, “”Tribe, De La, P.E….were like our big brothers in the game so now we are the little brothers of that movement…carrying on the tradition of good music.” This track below includes another amazing down south artist by the name of Median.

9th Wonder. Once apart of Little Brother, 9th Wonder is one of the most talented hip hop producers in the game. He’s produced for everyone from Jay-Z to Mary J. Blige to De La Soul to my favorite Mos Def. His beats are always simple, well thought up, and soulful. Check out Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition (2004) to see some real expertise.

Arrested Development. One of the earliest down south hip hoppers to grace the radio waves, they are the group that brought us songs like “Tennessee”, “Mr. Wendel”, and “People Everyday”. They are still putting out quality music too!

Steve Morse. Now he’s one of those guitarists I like to throw out there becuase so few people seem to know who he is. That is, until I remind them that he played guitar for the Dixie Dregs. No, that’s not true. No one knows them either. How about Deep Purple? Maybe. Guitar Hero II actually has a track by them. Kansas? Now we’re getting somewhere. Honestly, you should know all three bands. But he’s got some really good solo albums too. Both the clips I picked to show him off are from his solo album High Tension Wires (1989), Tumeni Notes and Looking Back. By the way, did I mention he won Guitar Player Magazine’s Best Overall Guitar Player five years in a row?

Al DiMeola. That should be the first name out of your mouth when talking about great jazz guitarists. Sadly, it seems to rarely be the case even though he has won the title of Best Jazz Guitarist four times in the Guitar Player Magazine’s Reader Poll. And its not like this guy is new to the scene. He’s been pumping out albums since the 70’s and is still hard at work. He’s fast, technically articulate, pleasing to the ear, and easily one of the best guitarists around. You can find the full version of the two clips I’ve selected on Land of the Midnight Sun (1976) and Elegant Gypsy (1977), Land of the Midnight Sun and Race with the Devil on a Spanish Highway.

Eric Johnson. Its pretty hard to have never heard of this guy if you’re a serious guitar player. He was part of at least one of the G3 tours. To be honest, I don’t know much about him to give a brief bio, but if you click on his name it’ll take you to his website where you can find several reviews and transcripted interviews. Then again, you don’t really need to know someone to know they’re phenomonal at the guitar. I selected Cliffs of Dover from Ah Via Musicom (1990) and S.R.V. from Venise Isle (1996). By the way, those initials better mean something to you.

Joe Satriani. You’ve been waiting for this name haven’t you? He’s possibly the most known of the four I’ve mentioned thus far. I know I said was gonna mention the guitarists I feel aren’t mentioned enough, but damn is he good. Joe has taught many guitarists who have gone on to make rather prominent carrers in the music industry (e.g. Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Larry LaLonde (Primus), David Bryson (Counting Crows), Kevin Cadogan (Third Eye Blind), and Steve Vai). He’s also been on every G3 tour. Its hard not to appreciate this guy, even if his music does remind you of the soundtrack to Sonic the Hedgehog… I just so happen to like Sonic the Hedgehog. I’ve selected House of Bullets from Crystal Planet (1998) and The Mystical Potato Head Groove Thing from Flying in a Blue Dream (1989).

Stevie Ray Vaughan. Now you’re gonna say that any respectable guitarist or guitar enthusiast knows him. This is true. However, I still think not nearly enough people know about him and too many know of him but haven’t bothered to check out his music. Here’s your chance. Two of my favorites, Crossfire from In Step (1989) and Tin Pan Alley from Couldn’t Stand the Weather (1984).