Moska Project

In 2004, I met, in passing, two smiling and joyful human beings from Caracas, Venezuela. A year later, hearing Carlos Chaumer and Gilly Gonzalez perform for the first time was invigorating and refreshing.

The two energetic men had the sound of four. The dynamic immediately brought to light was a bass that was looped, allowing Gilly to play a harmonic bass lead.  Carlos showed to be a power drummer. To put it simply, he wasn’t messing around.

The joy of hearing bilingual lyrics gifted nourishment to the music  and mystery at first blush. This inspired my warm appreciation for the sharing of cultures.

The pair, “barefoot and baggies,” owned the crowd.  The music demanded a dance celebration! When Gilly sang “Shake it, shake it,” singing the now staple song, ‘El Mayor,’ the whole crowd shook it! 

I looked at Gina with huge eyes.

“Gina, I can’t believe all this sound is coming from two people.”

She agreed. “I know, Dan, he really knows how to use that pedal.”

In 2007, the musical pair gifted their music to the volunteers of Treasure Coast Surfrider Foundation, and they have continued to support the foundation.

I met Jorge Orellana, also from Caracas, Venezuela, at the local drum circle at Shepard Park. He was, at the time, performing with another group. I thought “wouldn’t it be great if…..”

And  it happened! Jorge joined the project, bringing a solid harmony, and has learned Moska’s classic songs like ‘El Mayor,’ on bass. Gilly now plays guitar leads, some Santana-inspired.

Beau Parra, also from Caracas, has rejoined the group to once again bring a spice and flare of Latin percussion. Joyful, he adds to Carlos’s easily distinguishable drum beats.

To see the group now, as four, makes me so proud and happy for them. Moska music brings motivation, and flavor to life.

“All I wanted was to make a simple song

Make the people jump around and dance along

…I want to make you have some fun!”

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Cheezy and the Crackers, South Jersey

       Parts of South Jersey are a compact, musical treasure chest. I never knew this until I traveled north, spending enough time in South Jersey to find my scene. And one of the greatest groups from South Jersey, Cheezy and the Crackers.

     Compared to my  surface memories from my childhood, my new discoveries were priceless and in depth. Living as children, the  world seems vast and unending. Buildings are bigger, walks are longer, trees seem much taller. The ground that we are allowed to cover as children seems like a whole town within itself.  I remember circling the sidewalk on my first bicycle. I felt as if I had as much room to pedal as I needed, on Commerce Street in Bridgeton, New Jersey. I compare this vision to that of Peter Gabriel in a live performance of “Solsbury Hill,” where he circles on stage, freely riding a bike, singing “Today, I don’t need a replacement, I’ll tell them what the smile on my face meant.”  

     As I drove north towards New Jersey via I-95 during the winter of 2007, each chilly stop for gas meant one more layer of clothing. As I neared the Delaware Memorial Bridge, I veered the wrong way and got lost in Philadelphia.

      Once I made it to my destination, I stopped at  Music Central  in Vineland. I walked in, asked about the music scene, and was quickly told to look for Cheezy and the Crackers shows. This suggestion would open the universe,  to what I had hoped to find.

      About a week later, I opened the door to the Frosted Mug in Vineland. There were greetings from the beat of the music, and I felt right at home. As I looked around at the crowd, I listened to a positive, light, Sublime inspired song. The music was well written and had so much energy.  Cheezy and the Crackers  songs are parallel to the local bands I was used to.  They were by far the cleanest sounding and most well rehearsed reggae/rock/hip hop group I heard in the South Jersey area. Their music stood out and the performance was fun and lighthearted. 

     Before moving back to Florida, I spoke with Charles, the well- spoken, open- minded front man of Cheezy and the Crackers. I shared information  with him about our music scene in Florida, letting him know that I could picture his band playing a show on the Treasure Coast of Florida. His excitement and energy was clearly communicated. He was professional, motivated and optimistic. 

      And in the summer of 2010, a few years later, this vision came to life. Just as I had imagined, the locals loved the music. This was a free show, for our local Non-Profit Environmental group Treasure Coast Surfrider Foundation. The members of the band, Randy Richardson, Albert Trionfo, Cheezy McNasty, Mike Sarkady and Tom Parker covered their own travel expenses, gifting us with their music. At the end of the set I could feel great energy  as we heard a song they had written for us, about what we unite for: The purity and respect of our waters. Their message was loud and clear. 

     Not only was the show crisp sounding and full of great new material, but I could  sense the groups connection with each other, as well as ability and gift to connect to our locals during their performance. It felt like they had been here for a while. This is an undeniable key to live performance. It is a great achievement to maintain balance and connect with the energy of the audience just as is sounding great recorded.

     Cheezy and the Crackers is a diverse group obviously inspired by a range of genres. They sound great doing acoustic tunes, like   "Twenty After Four." They grab the attention of a Philadelphia crowd, as well as a "surf ghetto."  They went on to play shows with  Less than Jake, and are currently in the studio recording new material.