Top 10 Reasons I Love I Mother Earth

I get very emotional about my music. Ask me for my favorite artist and I might give you a different answer any given day of the week. But there are a few bands which stay near the top perpetually and I Mother Earth sits squarely in that category. They're an absolute go-to at any time I need a pick-me-up or I just want to chill and they never disappoint. I figured I needed to sort out what makes them so great!

10. They have a separate percussionist meaning they generate a very Latin, funk feeling in their music - Santana-esque. Exquisite. 

9. Not afraid to use odd rhythms and off-kilter patterns straying very far away from mainstream rock music.

8. You would be hard pressed to name another band that sounds like I Mother Earth, but you can hear a little bit of many other notable bands in what they do. iTunes mentions Rush, King Crimson, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Primus, Jane's Addiction and Smashing Pumpkins. And yet... none of those bands sound particularly like IME. By the way, how's that for a list of other bands to be mentioned alongside?

7. So many different lyrics that resonate with me. Deeply resonate:

And then you long
For the days of trippin' down
The long road just reading the
Signs that show you the way to
A higher place you meditate to
Feel the quiet of the earth
That was back
When we used to be alright 

6b. Brian Byrne can easily sing anything Edwin could sing, but not visa versa. I am into both "old" and "new" IME, but clearly Brian was an upgrade for this band in terms of emotional resonance, stylistic range and depth of performance. And let's call it out - he's from Newfoundland which gives him a much different upbringing and experience set than the mainstream... and that's a good thing. His lyrics and performance on a track like "My Beautiful Deep End" is hauntingly beautiful.

6a. Jag Tanna is just your average, everyday guy - a lot like most Canadians I know. Not a rockstar, not bigger than anything. He loves music, he loves to talk guitars, he is in it for the fans and has stopped playing the music industry "game" as evidenced by this excellent Q&A following IME's recent reunion shows. Recently I saw him posting and going back and forth with a lot of discussion on a Canadian guitarist's discussion forum. When was the last time you saw a major rock guitarist doing that? Right - never!

5. The last time I saw them play I was with my best friend from Canada and I think about that night (and many nights we hung out) A LOT. It takes me back to a different time in my life, a time I treasure.

4. Perhaps the very best song about the intrigue and loneliness of being a space traveler with the exception of David Bowie's Space Oddity. One More Astronaut tells a simple tale on its surface, but going much deeper doesn't it really describe those periods we have all been through where we face the same dreary routines and feel beaten down? And that percussion again - on top of Jag's fat guitar sound it just fills everything in and gives the song a three dimensional depth.

3. Jag's ability to pull in layered harmonics and fifths both within his chords and in particular while soloing. I'm not sure I've ever heard another guitarist who does it as often and with such effortlessness. Check out this solo from Meat Dreams to see what I mean.

Here is the entire song - fast forward to 5:57 if you just want to hear the solo, but really the entire middle section starting around 3:24 is something amazing to behold. There is an energy, some sort of dynamic / sonic force that just hits you square throughout. Wow.

2. They went away for a long time, but they came back. This band knows and understands there is a fan base extraordinaire which has been waiting and longing for the day that they would reunite. And they didn't skip a beat based on the videos I've seen from the Sound Academy. 

1. They're CANADIAN! Either you know what I mean or your don't. All of my American friends who have met my Canadian friends will certainly understand immediately. For me... the 8 years I lived in Canada were some of the sweetest of my life.