ART of ACH

Somebody I know whom I greatly respect as both an artist and a person recently told me something that had an impact on me. He noticed in some of my drawings (see older posts) that I had a bit of a "style" developing, it's a simplified style that I've been trying my hands at after being inspired by guys like Stephen Silver, Shane Glines, and a bunch of the guys on the links section. He said "Artists can sometimes hide behind styles", and though I'm certain he said this with no ill will towards my work, it did make me think. Artists like those I mentioned who draw in that simplified style I admire so much, also have a clear understanding of the fundamentals of drawing. Though I've been drawing for a few years, I'm hardly a master of the basic fundamentals, in fact...I still have a whole lot to learn. These past few drawings I've done, though still as caricatures, were done with some of the fundamentals lacking in my older posts. I found out that I've had a hard time with shading, and with details like hair. Giving them form, weight, mass...It's definitely a challenge and something I've gotten rusty with while drawing in the style I've been developing. I still want to develop that style, but I don't want to use it as a crutch to avoid the basics of drawing. Sorry for the long explanation...here now, are more drawings.