Lotus: musical potpourri of styles and sounds

I rang in 2012, in my favorite city of brotherly love, seeing one of my favorite bands, LOTUS. If you don’t know who they are you better expand your musical knowledge and experience them. They have been described as "sexy and sophisticated dance music, mature enough to be played in the club or the living room".
I have always seen lotus on the festival trips I took, and it was usually late night. I have seen their shows in the past year where they have been headlining- and they have always raged. Due to their popularity in the festival circuit you will often find their shows sold out. A few of my friends who have recently started going to musical festivals would send me their music line up and ask me who to go see- and I would always say LOTUS. They are not the electronic UNTZing that Rusko and Skrillex promote, but more of a jam band with jazzy-house and drum 'n' bass and is mixed with elements of jazz, funk, and ethnic music from India, Africa, and Latin America. Lotus' seamless mixes and interlocking rhythms play like a DJ, but with a human touch.

Lotus played in a heated tent- that was filled with hoopers, poi ball throwers and people in costume. They opened up with one of their fan favorites- Hammerstrike- (I was secretly hoping for a Spiritualize opener)- and with their sound came a light show that mesmerized all of the fans. The set-break had all of the concert viewers running out to Festival Pier and watching the fireworks that brightened the sky when the clock hit midnight.

And the Winner Is...

So my thoughts on the grammys…
I am happy the following people won-
Best Regional Roots Music Album- Rebirth Brass Band
Reggae Album: “Revelation Pt. 1: The Root of Life,” Stephen Marley
Best Americana Album- Levon Helm (YAY!!!)
I am also taken aback about the “house” music that has hit the scene and people like Skrillex and Avicii being nominated in these categories. I love band like Tribe, Lotus, and Umphrey’s- who for all intensive purposes are electronic/house music. But I do think that musicians like Skrillex, Rusko and Avicii are just too digitalized for me. They really aren’t playing any instruments- and mixing stuff on their computers. Don’t get me wrong- I love their shows- they are always packed and I can always shake it- but I really think there is a talent lost- which is why I always promote bands- like lotus and sts9. The best thing I think tribe did, and what makes them one of my favorite musicians is they totally stripped their electronic side in “Axe the Cables”. It really made them in my eyes a true band.
Of course Adele took most of the grammy’s- her vocal range is amazing. I am also glad she is on the thicker side. Shows me that not all music is lost. I am really not shocked that the youth today is all on ADD medication after going to a bunch of these electronic/house music shows I go to. How can you get your mind straight- when the music is all over the place?

The Purpose.....

If God is the DJ, Life is a Dance Floor, Love is the Rhythm, and You are the Music.
I turn 30 in September, although people tell me I look a lot younger (thankfully) I have a great job, a great group of friends, and a very strong passion for music. I was brought up in a household where Michael Jackson, Bob Marley, Sade and the Gipsy Kings were blared on Friday nights in the living room with my parents. I asked my dad to take me to a New Kids on the Block concert in the second grade- he told me to learn all of the “Dark Side of the Moon” lyrics, and then we could talk- I did- and quickly forgot about NKOTB.
While in college, I had a great experience. I met the sound guy for Bob Marley’s original Wailers at a show at UVA. It was cold, me being the kind natured person I am brought him a hot chocolate- we became fast friends, and I had the pleasure of touring with them for several summers, selling shirts, and taking care of Rasta kids. I was going to the summer festivals like Bonnaroo, and All Good, when they were small and not trendy at all. It was cool, because I wasn’t a spectator- I was there to make cash selling shirts- and you saw the other side of a festival. I had daily interactions with people like Ashton “Family Man” Barrett, and Junior Marvin, who would tell some crazy stories of Marley. I also had the honor of being able to sit in watching the recordings of “Is It Rolling Bob”- Bob Dylan songs remade by reggae artists. I saw Soldiers of Jah Army, grow from a high school opener, to a Wailers opener, to a world renowned name. Reggae and I have always had an intimate relationship. When I get depressed, the choosing of a Toots and the Maytals song- often lifts my spirits.
While my counterparts spend their times at bars- I am out on the concert scene- soaking up like a sponge, the music, the culture and the people. I have always felt at the bar scene where I reside that we are often judged… judged by our clothes, our friends and etc. and one of the most valued things about music is I am not judged- everyone there is for the same purpose and to experience the oneness. “Music is the great communicator”
I am dedicating this blog to the soundtrack of my life, the people, the shows… and the Music.