A new wave of young musicians establishing a generational identity by redefining classic popular music with remarkable skill and deadly accuracy.
The “Book People” wandering in the forest and reciting their assigned novels. Credit: Fahrenheit 451
Film buffs, movie lovers, and anyone over the age of 60 might recall the original 1966 film, Fahrenheit 451, a British dystopian drama directed by François Truffaut based on Ray Bradbury’s critically acclaimed 1954 novel of the same name. The film is set in a totalitarian future where literature is outlawed, books are banned, and storm trooping firemen are tasked with locating and incinerating books to suppress dissent and maintain state control.
In the film’s poignant final scene, a group of intelligent and responsible individuals (the “Book People”) have each adopted the name of a classic author and taken on the arduous and near-impossible task of reading and memorizing the text of entire novels in an effort to preserve their importance and pass on the books to future generations.
Film buffs, movie lovers, and anyone over the age of 60 might recall the original 1966 film, Fahrenheit 451, a British dystopian drama directed by François Truffaut based on Ray Bradbury’s critically acclaimed 1954 novel of the same name. The film is set in a totalitarian future where literature is outlawed, books are banned, and storm trooping firemen are tasked with locating and incinerating books to suppress dissent and maintain state control.
Fortunately, we have not resorted to state-mandated book burnings, but given the current levels of widespread cancelations, shadow banning, censorship, and the current state of global affairs, we may very well be headed in that direction.
Over the past decade, I’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon that, in my opinion, is somewhat reminiscent of the “Book People,” particularly in the popular music space. In the absence of powerful cultural, social, and political forces such as the civil rights movement that kick-started and inspired young people, ignited innovations, and pushed the boundaries in songwriting, composing, sounds, musicianship, and onstage performances from the 1960s well into the late 90s and early 2000s, there are groups of young people of all races and ethnic backgrounds reproducing classic rock music covering some of the most complicated rock tunes to emerge from the past.
What I’ve observed is that these are not just great cover bands that one might see pop up at a local pub or music venue—these young people have added new meaning to the concept of covering the music of others. These are highly skilled, extremely talented, disciplined, and mature musicians in their teens and twenties who are constrained by present-day social, economic, and political circumstances, and lack the cultural sensibilities that gave birth to groups like Fleetwood Mac, Steely Dan, King Crimson, and Nirvana, but are determined to be heard, acknowledged, and seen as equals along with the desire to carry the music forward and ensure that the classics are not lost, forgotten, and washed away by the increasing tidal wave of soulless, AI-fabricated vapid rubbish attempting to pass as quality music.
My Top Five Bands
The following is a short list of incredible bands and individual musicians currently circulating the airwaves. As a drummer who has performed with a number of bands over the past fifty years, I and any musician can tell you that the time, effort, accuracy, and musicianship that went into covering the tunes performed by these young people is nothing short of breathtaking.
# 5: The Graystones
Credit: The Graystones
Hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, The Graystones are known for dynamic live performances and soulful covers of classic hits. Formed in 2023, they blended rock, pop, and blues influences, bringing fresh energy to beloved songs while crafting a sound entirely their own.
Here is a video of the group covering Toto’s “Hold the Line.” Amazing!
# 4: F.A.T. Betty
Credit: F.A.T. Betty
A teen rock band from Archie Williams High School (AWHS) in Marin County, CA, F.A.T Betty formed in 2024, playing at the San Rafael PorchFest, an annual music event held in the Gerstle Park neighborhood. These teenage musicians dabble in everyone from Led Zeppelin to Alanis Morissette.
Don’t let the name throw you; the only thing FAT about this band is their sound, insane musicianship, and the great voice of Archie Williams High School junior and lead singer, Petra Betti.
Any Rush fans out there? Here is F.A.T. Betty performing at an outdoor concert, crushing Rush’s “The Spirit of Radio” (1.5M views).
# 3: Missioned Souls
Credit: Missioned Souls
Missioned Souls—an interesting and apt name for a band truly on a mission to resurrect and redefine rock classics. These amazing young people are a tight-knit family band from the Philippines. They cover a wide range of rock classics with deadly accuracy. Their website offers the following:
Our Family Legacy
At MissionedSouls.net, we are a family band dedicated to spreading love and joy through music. Our unique blend of harmonies and heartfelt lyrics resonates with audiences of all ages, creating unforgettable experiences.
Here is the group covering Deep Purple’s “Highway Star.” (4.77M views and counting!) Not The Monkees . . . not the Mamas and the Papas . . . but heavy metal, in-your-face Deep Purple— Filipino style!
The first time I saw this clip I almost fell out of my chair. Check out the killer note-for-note Ritchie Blackmore guitar solo and the super-clean 10-year-old’s sparkling drum chops right up there with Deep Purple drummer, Ian Paice.
# 2: Guitar Prodigy, Grace Bowers
Credit: David McCliste
And then there is 20-year-old Grace Bowers, an American blues rock guitarist, songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee. Grace leads her own band, The Hodge Podge, a group that blends blues-rock with heavy elements of funk and soul.
Bowers started playing guitar when she was nine. She gained a following during the COVID lockdowns by live-streaming guitar jams on Reddit and Instagram. Some of Grace’s fans include Brian May, Eric Clapton, Slash, Chris Martin, Nancy Wilson, Devon Allman, Margo Price, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Susan Tedeschi, and Dolly Parton.
Here is Grace at 16 ripping up Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Scuttle Buttin’” at a live gig in Nashville.
# 5: Greyson Nekrutman, Drummer Par Excellence
Credit: Greyson Nekrutman
There is really only one word to describe Greyson Nekrutman—frightening!
This young dude is the Mike Tyson of drumming, an absolute beast that you never wanna get in a ring with.
Originally from Long Island, NY, Greyson, now 23, started playing drums at age four and was taught many genres including Latin, jazz, and rock. He became known as a jazz and big band drummer, heavily influenced by the likes of Sonny Payne, Louie Bellson, Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, Max Roach, and Art Blakey, as well as other jazz-influenced drummers like Carter Beauford, Mitch Mitchell, and Ginger Baker.
Greyson’s wide-ranging musical vocabulary includes thrash metal, groove metal, crossover thrash, big band, and modern jazz. This is a young man with a vast knowledge of drumming styles and techniques of past masters and the technical skills of any drummer living or deceased. This is not hyperbole. Here is a closeup of Greyson playing to a packed stadium with the heavy metal band, Suicidal Tendencies. On the other end of the music spectrum, Greyson recorded himself in his studio playing alongwith a video of the Count Basie Orchestra performing “Back to the Apple” live on the Ed Sullivan Show, November 22, 1959. The drummer on that date was none other than the great Sonny Payne. Similar to Payne, young Nekrutman doesn’t keep time, he is time.
A Way Forward
We are living in dark times where our precious youth are struggling to survive, many besieged by physical and emotional issues and addicted to alcohol and drugs. They are lost, confused, and trying to navigate a corrupt system and shameless government that cares more about pouring billions of dollars into bombing and slaughtering people of other countries than their well-being and existence.
Despite the bleak prospects for a stable future, there are remarkable pockets of hope exhibited by these young musicians who are fortunate to have great parents and a loving and caring network of adults supporting their talents and ambitions.
I’ve read hundreds of interviews with most of all the jazz greats, from Miles Davis to Sonny Rollins, and at some point, they all recounted their early exposure to music and the people that taught, respected, encouraged, and nurtured their aspirations: a parent, a friendly neighbor, a high school music teacher.
Today we have the Save the Music Foundation (STM), formerly known as VH1 Save the Music, an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports music education in public schools. STM works directly with communities to address systemic inequities in music education and create sustainable programs. Save the Music is said to have donated more than $78 million in instruments and music technology equipment to approximately 2,800 public schools since it was founded in 1997.
This is wonderful, but we don’t need another tax loophole nonprofit to save anything. We need a reallocation of wealth and budget priorities making American communities our top priority. It is 2026 and we have reached a $1.5 trillion military budget, an obscene figure that doesn’t include secret programs. This is enough money to feed, clothe, house, educate, and potentially create an entire army of Stevie Wonders, Sergei Rachmaninoffs, Ella Fitzgeralds, Eric Claptons, Aretha Franklins, or you name it.
Forget Save the Music. How ’bout we save the current and future generations and even the fucking world while we’re at it.