There are good bands, and then there are great bands. One of the things that makes a great band, is a great frontman. I'm not necessarily talking about the leather-pant-wearing, crazy-haired frontman. I mean someone who a) has a great voice (a unique voice helps too), b) is energetic, c) gets the crowd going, and d) makes you wish you were them. The last two shows I've been to had those kinds of men at the helm. First, Elbow. Lead singer Guy Garvey MAKES this band. He IS this band. Yes, the music is excellent, but his interpretations of the lyrics, his range, his British accent, and his unique tone quality makes Elbow's music really stand out. The show was incredible.
Then, The Decemberists. I must make a quick aside to tell you that my brother asked me last weekend, "So who are you going to see? Wacky Christmas?" Awesome. Anyways, their lead singer is Colin Meloy. He writes witty, whimsical, narrative, awesome songs. He has an unorthodox voice, with some kind of speech "impediment" like thing as well. It may or may not ACTUALLY be an impediment, I'm not really sure. Regardless, it makes his pronunciation of some words very interesting. I saw the Decemberists last weekend and they were incredible. Again, the other band members are very talented, but his voice takes the music to a new level.
Perhaps that's my beef with popular alternative music. So many lead singers sound like the same old raspy, Chad Kroeger (Nickelback) voice. A unique lead singer goes such a long way toward making a band truly great.
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As a post script, my grandmother turned 98 today! Happy Birthday Grandmama!
3 comments:
Torri Amos, AC/DC (Donald Duck), John Hiatt, Rod Stewert, Dave (nasal twanger) Mathews, Adele, Bobby Bland, Rush, Dolores (Crannberries) all come to mind. Look at Journey. They had to duplicate Steve perry's voice b/c they sucked without him. Front mens RULE !
Eddie Vedder circa 1993 gets my vote.
Hey, now. What about Bonnie Raitt? Can't there be a front WOMAN?
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