Driven To Drink

"Black boy joy." That's what Leikeli47 highlights at the end of her Tiny Desk, referring to her backing musicians, the TSA Band. Leikeli47 glides effortless across hip hop, r&b, blues, gospel, and jazz as the TSA Band serves everything piping hot.  It's Black girl magic, Black boy joy, and an absolute clinic in engaging and rocking a crowd. "Black boy joy" is also is a wonderful reference to the singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist Josh Karpeh, whose stage name is Cautious Clay.  We'll spend a little time with him here as well. Thanks for hanging out with me. Love yinz. -G    

Natalie Prass. Hoo. Smooth-ass funk, jazz, summertime soul made for driving real slow, windows down, at the spot. Lyrics, are deep.  vocals, are absolute fire.  Rhythm section, in the gotDamn pocket.  Guitar and keys just giving that texture, filling up spaces with beautiful things. Listen, huh?  It's worth your time, I promise. Hang with me. Love yinz -G  

Every note of American and international popular music made today can be traced back, at least in part but typically in great part, to enslaved Africans and their descendants in North, Central, and South America, including the West Indies. Today, we're having a little exploration of a sub-genre of hip hop, that being: trap. We'll have a listen to current ubiquitous trap; to one of the pioneers of the genre, Zaytoven, playing live at the Tiny Desk; and then a little fun with T-Pain...which is a departure from the trap but still a beautiful example of Black musicianship, innovation, and church training. Hang out, grab a drink or whatever, and prepare yourself for 808s and tea. -g  

Pedrito Martinez, a name that, when spoken aloud provides back-to-back triplets with emphasis on the second note of both. peh-DREE-to...mar-TEE-nez A percussionist, a band-leader, a singer, composer, and impossible talent. Really, you should check this out.  Scour the internet for live performances.  The Pedrito Martinez rabbit hole is a wild, welcome ride. But hang with me first, huh? Let's listen together, and maybe we process and experience the music in new ways.  That's what appreciation and curation are all about, right? Love yinz.

Have you heard Moses Sumney? You should amend that situation, post haste, should you answer be, "No." Sumney is a vocal virtuoso, but also a masterful multi-instrumentalist, composer, lyricist, producer, and also music director.  Hang with me as I hang with him and the band who accompanied him at his Tiny Desk. This is the second of a series highlighting the voice as an instrument. Love yinz. -G

Today? Voice as instrument. The vocal mechanism; diaphragm, lungs, vocal cords, velum, nasal and oral cavities, mandible, tongue, teeth, lips; is an instrument, and some people are vocally virutosic. Lau Noah is one of those people. But also, she is self taught on guitar and, as the story goes, she picked up her first guitar in 2016. She is in her early twenties. It's all improbable to the extent of impossible. Noa is not a zebra.  She is a unicorn.  A solitary voice and talent incomparable. Please hang, you won't regret it. -G  

Today we traverse Phish, Babyface, Conjunto Cespedes, Soulive, and The Beatles. That's post-Dead jam band royalty, 90s R&B royalty, salsa (should be) royalty, jazz-soul-funk-trio royalty (I know, that's massively specific, but no less true), and the mother effing Beatles. I'm thankful for the rich, diverse atmosphere of music in which I was raised and through which I traveled to this very day.  This particular episode really traverses quite a bit of that eclectic influence. Hang aht, won't yinz? You're always welcome. -G  

Seems Driven2Drink is becoming a bit of a music appreciation podcast, and I'm fully in. Of course, I still love having amazing conversations with amazing people and if any of you amazing people would ever want to sit and talk with me, over drinks or tea or (wink) tea or whatever floats your boat, let me know. Anyway, do you know about Blood Orange, a.k.a. Dev Hynes?  You should.  Oh, you do!  Well great, hang out with us during his Tiny Desk.  Also, a little injection of Phillip Glass as well as couple D2D Gregory the Extra (...that really should be my Twitter handle...) tags.  And the incredible theme music by Deck of Jack.  "Party at the Airport," video...right here! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDTDCusOS-o) Hang aht, yinz guys! -G  

Today we meet Carolina Eyck and Clarice Jensen, the former with voice and theramin, the latter with cello.  Both coordinating effects peddles and looping technology, a really amazing concert.  Oh, and today we meet the theremin.  It's a very cool instrument played without ANY physical contact between the artist and the instrument. Today we also engage in a dramatic reading of "Yinzerotica," with a very romantic soundtrack. It's win-win, truly. Love that yinz're here.  Hang aht, 'n'at. -G

Today we hang with emo post-industrial prog-neo-soul synth-pop one-man-band Nate Wood and his project: fOUR. Today we talk about that Gillette commercial...which D2D endorses entirely. Next week we hang with and learn about the theramin. But for today, please just pop in your headphones, hit [play], and have some treadmill time.  (If that's how you do this.)  Or drink.  (If you do that.)  But not both of those things together.  (Unless it's in your basement, in which case who am I to tell you what to do?  I'm not the boss of you.) -G  

Please hang with me. And Buddy. Dude is smooth af.  And his band is exceptional. It's a funky, chill, soulful, church-bred, West Coast, four hundred and twenty degrees vibe. Really, it's good. So hang. Love yinz. -G

Do you dig jazz? Also laughing? Also finding ways to lead with love and achieve personal homeostasis in this world we are all experiencing and enduring? Do you follow me on Twitter or dig me on Facebook? Let's hang.  Have a listen.  Share a laugh and some art. -G  

My hope for every human not actively harming others on a superiority trip is a happy and healthy new year. Let's strap in for 2019, and do the work necessary to make our surrounding evironments as safe, loving, healthy, inclusive, and accessible for all as we can manage. I give you, here, a few minutes of respite from the timeline or deadline as we listen to H.E.R.'s Tiny Desk Concert and vibe on the musicianship and depth of art and soul. I love that you're here with me. -G

I am who I am. I apologize for that, no longer. I do what I do. I'll be apologizing for that, in earnest, as often as what I do brings harm to other humans. The goal?  That I reduce the harm I bring to others until it is non-existent. Also?  That I reduce the harm I bring to myself similarly. Souls who were near to me, dear to me, extricated themselves this year, leaving my inner circles freer and clearer.  And in losing emotional and relationship dysfunction, I am better able to continue my Boddhisattva path.  Alleviating suffering. I am trying. Please hang with us, our 201st episode of the podcast. Love yinz. -G  

Hi! Yes, next week you'll hear the conclusion of 2018. That clause brings me such joy.  The conclusion of 2018.  That's my Santa Clause, if you will.  (And why would you not?) But for today, a holiday gift for one and all.  Or likely closer to 24 or so.  It's 23 minutes in total.  The core portion, after the intro and theme song, is 20:19.  (I thought it was 20:18.  Either way, be it luck or serendipity...which I've always thought of as, "luck plus some unknowable/imperceivable help"...good riddance to bad rubbish. See yinz next week. -G

It's been a year. Hasn't it? (It's not over, yet.) I know. (So don't jinx it.) Sorry. (What are we talking about anyway?) Oh, here is the first part of a conversation with Mark.  And some outtakes, tomfoolery, and shenanigans. (K, cool.) Thnx. -G  

Hi. I got to talk with Kivan Bay (@kivabay on Twitter), and Kivan is awesome.  He really, truly is.  Perhaps you know him, and you're like, "Oh, shit!  I love him!"  Yep.  Me too.  Or maybe you don't, but if you listen, you will.  And then you'll be like, "Oh, shit!  I love him!"  I promise. We talk about quite a bit, ranging from homelessness to gaming, transness to religiosity, theory and praxis...such a soulful talk. We also talk about several artists to whom I want to give credit and encourage you to support: Mikaela (@guysmiley22), Caelyn (@inurashii), and Maddy (@MIDImyers). Thank yinz for hanging and being all around lovely humans. Love, G

Listening back to myself from a year ago, and it struck me that, "Wow.  That is NOT...where I am right now." In the upcoming weeks, you'll meet Kivan Bay (...or, if you know Kivan Bay, you'll get to hear him on this here podcast.  Really freaking cool, huh?!...) and also reacquaint with Mark, and these conversations will truly illuminate and encapsulate what a difference THIS year makes. Thank you for being here for and with me.  I love yinz.  

New from D2D, "Jazz Is a Four Letter Word." Wherein we meet an amazing glass artist, http://www.guerreroglass.com/about/ listen to the Nicholas Payton trio, consume and react to incredible (INCREDIBLE) Black art, https://www.npr.org/2018/11/01/662901862/nicholas-payton-trio-tiny-desk-concert and give thanks for all of the things for which we should give thanks. For me, today, among other things including intoxicants and my wife (not in that order), that's you. So thanks. Have a listen. -G  

Really? The title says just about "it all." If you happen to not be either of those things, but generally dig my vibe, this is also for you.  I promise. I can't imagine you're here unless you want to be here at this point.  So, let's hang. Love yinz. -G