MMFRR#8 -- Jimi Maze

For reasons that probably won't be known until therapy peels back the layers, my musical tastes tend to lean towards the dark and dour. Angry/sad music seems more authentic than something knee-slappingly bright, and melodically usually sounds better too. There's a reason why "Shiney Happy People" is REM's worst song and "Drive" one of their best. It's all about attitude, and there's little room for a good attitude in rock 'n' roll.

So here in my Myspace Friends Request inbox to prove my point is Jimi Maze.

Hypnotizing.

Jason Mraz.
Jimi Maze.
Mraz, Maze.
JM, JM.

The comparisons don't stop there, either. Maze, in fact, is a Mraz clone, sent to us by science to keep the fratboys occupied enough to not set things on fire. Armed with a guitar, a penchant for bustin' rhymes, and a feel-good repertoire of music, Maze is here to emcee your kegger and possibly steal your girl.

It's amazing, shocking if it weren't so commonplace, how bastardized rap and hip-hop have become. Once a tool for social consciousness, the genre (facets of it, at least) is now a fun little toy for those too lazy to mess around with melody. Rap's delivery is easy and mindless (just talk to the rhythm, yo) and apparently cool. Undoubtedly there are many people doing wonderful things in/with rap and hip-hop, but this isn't about them. This is about Jimi Maze.

At least, at very least, Maze doesn't take himself so seriously. Fred Durst takes himself seriously and consequently everybody laughs at him (they better, anyway). Maze, I get the feeling, is probably unfazed by how stupid I and others think his music is. The stupidity of the music is part of the appeal, for goodness sakes.

Peppy, bouncy, lowest common denominator feel-good acoustic guitar pop, faux-hop rhymin'... Maze is pretty good at what he does, but it happens that I can't really stand what he does.

Jimi Maze: for fans of Jason Mraz, Jack Johnson, underage drinking, Greek rushes, backwards baseball hats, and that peculiar phase between high school and college.

I rate him 4 Hey brahs out of 10.