Ooh lots of people! Awesome!
I'm a drummer hehe. I'm studying music full time and play in a funk/soul band and I teach on the weekends. I'm also in the process of putting together a chilled drum and bass band to play for cocktail clubs etc. I love music with a lot of space, and room the breathe, and I love finding other musicians who love to play for the sake of playing and to create something beautiful. There are so many people out there who just want attention and lose sight of making good music.
I was brought up in quite a musically versatile family. They listen to a lot of classical music, country, rock and pop.... only thing they never listen to is Jazz! So I had to get into that myself hehe.
If you had to name one artist who has been a big influence on you, who would it be?
I would have to say PJ Harvey for me

I just love her. Her music paints moods and pictures so well, and the way she uses her voice to tell stories is really amazing... sometimes she sounds like an old woman & other times young and very free.... I think she's an artist who has taken music to another level where it really is art... she isn't concerned with have a perfect sounding voice... the imperfections are a big part of her music for me. I LONG to find a vocalist to work with who thinks like that - not that I'm dissing having high standards in regards to technique, I work on that all the time myself, but I think there need to be more people who break loose and set about to create something different, be it gorgeous sounding & perfect or ugly and raw
Anyway, I'm blathering on and will shut up now hehe