Incubus is the greatest band of all time! I say this because I have been a fan since '01 and love everything they write. Its hard for someone with my eclectic music taste to find a band that satisfies each different taste that I have all at once. I am a trained musician on the clarinet and both the soprano and tenor sax. While growing up, it was fun for me to hear (for example) the saxophone solo in "Anti-gravity". It made an otherwise deemed "nerdy" instrument seem cool. And, it showed me that in the genre of alternative rock can be melodic at times.

That said, I remember the first time I saw Incubus live in 2002 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH. Needless to say, I was in awe the entire time, sang along with every word, and left happier than when I arrived. Then, two years later, I saw them again in Columbus at what was then PromoWest Pavilion. This show actually became the source of my now overwhelming interest in percussion. When Ben pulled that second drum set onto the stage and Ben, Brandon, and Jose went to town, my jaw was on the floor for nearly 30 minutes. After that night, I started to teach myself some new rhythms. The only hand-percussion type thing I had around my house was a Gatorade cooler that was in my parents basement. Good enough, I guess...different pitches and whatnot. I was in a band at the time and the guitar player came over to write some tunes. My best friend (who was our drummer) was unable to make it, so I jumped in a wrote the percussion parts using that same cooler. After that, there was no stopping me. Bought my first djembe a few weeks later, and I still play frequently now. That interest is all thanks to the men in this band. Without them, I never would've even thought to give it a try.

In closing, I'm probably going to wind up saying what I'm sure a lot of people on this site have already said...but I don't care. I relate mostly to Brandon. His writing has been speaking to me since that very first day I heard it in 2001. Somehow or another, its like he's inside my head. Whatever he wrote always seemed to speak to some oppressed emotion inside me. Once I realized this, listening to the music actually became therapeutic. I was kind of a "loner" in high school, and knowing that there was someone else out there that shared my ideas and feelings helped me realize that its okay to be a loner, as long as you stay true to yourself and your beliefs. And, I hold that lesson near and dear today. Its helped mold me into the person that I am, and I know it sounds "corny" and "typical", but in my case, it is more true than anything I've ever said