Jarring Juxtaposition

While I was sitting in the Living Room of the Mansion waiting for the upcoming band to perform, I had no idea that what I would be hearing was an instrument cocktail. I knew the band would be incorporating drums – the clue is in the name – but what I didn’t know was that the drums would be a smaller part of the overall sound explosion I was in for.

Drumhand isn’t your ordinary five-piece instrumentalist group — they’re a band that manages to successfully mix the tribal sounds of drums with the jazzy sounds of horns like the trumpet and saxophone.

Each member of the group not only played an instrument but added vocals as well, which was largely one syllable sounds with their voices. It didn’t take long for me to become entranced listening to the strong drum beats and the smooth voices on top of them.

Drumhand’s music isn’t the kind that you’d normally get stuck in your head, but what makes this band so relatable is their ability to combine powerful percussion with brilliant brass.

Marcus Ali was a standout performer. It was exciting to see him play the saxophone around his neck with his eyes closed and then easily switch to singing into the microphone. Larry Graves sat atop his box-shaped Gome foot drum and spoke to the audience in between songs. While he was playing, he kept time on the drum below him with his bare feet.

As I was leaving, the aftertaste of this particular cocktail left me fulfilled knowing that the booming sound of Drumhand mixed well with its haunting melodies.

You can listen to Drumhand’s music on their MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/drumhandmusic.

Tags

Drumhand, drums, percussion, The Mansion

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