Music You Can't Pigeonhole: Danny Sher on Emotion Over the Analytical

Drummer and composer Danny Sher sits down to discuss the tug-of-war between highly intellectualized composition and raw emotion. Danny breaks down his desire to dodge "accounting jazz" and write music that forces the audience to feel the rhythm before they can analyze it. Tracing his wild musical evolution, Danny shares hilarious early memories of acting as a "Dog Star Commander" mascot for Manchild, getting humbled at early sessions, and watching a young Tyshawn Sorey casually drum in 15. Danny explains his strategy for writing "jazz disguised as rock" with Horse Torso, navigating the brutal polyrhythms of Atomic Pigeons, and pivoting from insane technical compositions to the catchy verse-chorus songs that got Crippling Alcoholism signed to The Flenser.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro: Feeling the rhythm before judging the music

00:38 - The "Dog Star Commander" mascot in Manchild

05:10 - A humbling session

07:06 - Sitting behind a young Tyshawn Sorey playing in 15

08:48 - Forming Horse Torso and blending dissonance with relatable grooves

13:42 - Discovering the Mathcore Index Podcast and playing Saint Vitus

17:15 - Pivoting from insane technical music to catchy verse-chorus songs

20:39 - Getting signed to The Flenser with Crippling Alcoholism

24:42 - Dodging "accounting jazz" and focusing on emotion

26:10 - Navigating the otherworldly polyrhythms of Atomic Pigeons & Shardik

28:07 - Recording with legendary no-wave producer Martin Bisi

30:33 - Peter Apfelbaum's early funk days with Les Claypool

32:36 - Disguising jazz as rock: Writing for Travis Reuter and Andrew Smiley

38:51 - Writing cliches head-on for the hardcore band Unsee

40:04 - Outro: Keeping up with @HorseTorso

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