Here’s a recipe to fill your ears:

Astronautalis – ‘Pomegranate’ (2008- Eyeball Records) – 9/10

Ingredients:

1 Part Victorian Imagery

2 Parts Lo-Fi Folk

2 Parts Indie Hip-Hop

1 Part Raw Vocals

To mix:

Strain the Victorian Imagery through the lo-fi folk, mix well with the hip hop beats. Stir briefly. Cover with the raspy vocals drenched in cigarette smoke.

Serve chilled, perfect for any hip hop freestyle battles between Ernest Hemmingway and Modest Mouse.

– Posted by Tony Martin, 10/10/08

Obvious Keith Richards references aside, today we’ll take a look at some of the modern musicians that somehow beat the odds and survived unimaginable tragedy.

Now, in no particular order…

Alien Ant Farm

In May 2002, the band’s bus crashed into a truck. The accident killed the bus driver, put a crew member in a coma and broke various bones throughout the band— almost paralyzing the lead singer, Dryden Mitchell.

Fred Hell, former Tiger Army drummer

Fred Hell was shot four times, including once in the head, during an armed robbery at his friend’s apartment in 2003. His injuries eventually led to him leaving the band, but he eventually regained the ability to play drums.

50 Cent

In front of his grandmother’s home in 2000, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson got shot nine times. However, he made an almost complete recovery and went on to sell over 21 million albums.

Travis Barker, formerly of Blink 182 and Adam “DJ AM” Goldstein

In September, both artists survived a fiery Learjet crash. Barker’s assistant, Barker’s bodyguard and both pilots were killed in the crash. After impact, Barker and Goldstein managed to escape the wreck while on fire. They both suffered second and third degree burns and likely now disagree with the cliché, “Any landing you can walk away from is a good one.”