Let a Little Joy into Your Life
As displayed in the previous feature that covered my personal perception of prolific artists, a substantial amount of recognition and success does not always equate to artistic satisfaction. By nature, musicians often yearn to craft their definitive opus, a release that defines their talent, compassion, and commitment toward the art of music. So, say you are a member of a group who will inarguably be looked back upon as one of the most stylistically influential bands of this current decade. You have millions of fans, have become a popular name in your field, and have a plethora of experience under your belts in regard to touring, recording, and writing music. What incentive is there left to manufacture quality? Well, the desire to constantly be artistically productive is not only inherent in artists that are classified as prolific. These musicians are not in it to make a quick buck, or even a small one at that; the role of a songwriter in the music industry is one of the most unstable of financial occupations in the world. The reward comes in producing something that others love and the artists themselves admire. Also, there are few better things in life than actually being able to support yourself – even if it is just by scraping by – by doing something that you love.
Out of the three members in the Los Angeles-based Little Joy, many readers will likely be most familiar with the name Fabrizio Moretti. As the drummer for the now world-renowned The Strokes, he has experienced the trials and tribulations of stardom on both an independent and mainstream level ever since The Strokes exploded onto the scene in 2001 with their debut Is This It one of the few albums released in the past decade that can already be classified as an influential stepping stone to subsequent groups of a similar vein (which, as we all know, are many). True, the experienced Moretti makes up one-third of the group, but the other two members are also just as experienced and within a similar realm of success; Rodrigo Amarante is the lead vocalist and guitarist of Los Hermanos, one of the most reputable Brazilian groups of the decade (though they are currently on hiatus), and Binki Shapiro. Shapiro has created a buzz around Los Angeles for several years with her multi-instrumental abilities, tackling aspects like guitar, piano, and bass in Little Joy in addition to ukulele, organ, and melotron. She has also become notable for being Moretti’s current girlfriend (he had previously dated actress Drew Barrymore). By listening to the chemistry emitted on Little Joy’s debut album by these three members, though, this one appears to be going strongly and productively already.
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