The Beginning of Observing

I'm sorry the blog has been so dormant lately.

I've had heaps of work lately- been doing alot of writing.

Hope you all have been staying busy as well, keeping the skills sharp and the mind open.

My biggest object of interest that forced me to neglect all fountains of joy in my life was a fairly lengthy research paper on The Prince by Machiavelli.

I was surprised with how easily connections can be made from his theories to the music industry.

One of the most meaningful pieces of advice in The Prince has to do with the art of war, as is the majority of the subject matter in the work.

Machiavelli wrote that men of great power always exercise their abilities to wage war.

Even during times of peace, a leader should have his military on his mind at all times.

He should hunt during his leisure time, become accostomed to the land, and keep his mind sharp.

Now I'm not necessarily condoning the violence suggested, but this concept of incessent thought is applicable to any situation in which a person "must be number one."

I've tried to practice this throughout my day: my life and my thoughts became music.

I was surprised with the number of things I have discovered since I geared into this mindset.

I urge you to do the same!

Make yourself better! You owe it to the people.

Of Ink and Edge

The following is a very short essay I needed to write for an English class. It is meant to address whether or not the "pen is mightier than the sword." Any thoughts on the topic would be wonderful. Not that it would do me any good; I've already turned the assignment in. Either way, this topic has always interested me.

There isn't really any great reason to include this essay in a blog about songwriting and creativity, but I think the relationship between influential books or news reports and song lyrics or poems should be fairly obvious. So here goes:

It is a defining human quality that one has the ability of choice, to think and process on his own and not rely solely on instinctive programming.

With this quality, man has lifted himself to dominate the earth, leaving competition only with himself.

The ties that bind men so closely are made with fibers of the written word.

The most notable example is the Bible, which has quite possibly changed the world more than any other object or person.

From preventing wars to starting them, holy books are undeniable forces that are capable of uniting people across cultural boundaries.

These books influence the masses unlike anything else.

Speaking in terms of influence, one cannot deny the global power that is embodied in the United States Constitution.

It has played roles in much the same way as the holy books mentioned earlier.

Many hold it just as dear.

One of the Constitution's defining rights is its allowance of both free speech and free press.

The journalists, whom Theodore Roosevelt dubbed "muckrakers", provided one of the most famous example in excercising these rights.

By revealing injustices in the system, these journalists initiated the unprecedented reform that swept the nation from security of workers to voting rights to environmental conservation.

The written word has built mankind, where the sword has only pillaged.

It must be said that, more often than not, the former has built walls to protect many from the latter.

You are cordially invited...

Music allows for endless possibilities and with that, competion is nearly impossible.

People must be who they are.

If they allow their true self to come in to fruition, they need not worry about the stubborness that would otherwise allow others to benefit from their knowledge.

I'm slowly coming to realize this; I call for everyone else to do so, too.

Now, I realize that musical groups are a business and should be treated as such.

This business-like approach will be explained later on; however, music itself is a gift to humanity.

I doubt many would disagree. (Please say so, if you do. Comments are welcome!)

With this being said, I ask all of you to participate: leave feedback, argue, criticize, be poetic, be revolutionary.

Do what you do best.

We hope to help you in your songwriting endeavors and to learn from you as well.

Peace and love, Max.

A Change in Direction

Well, after a few days of pondering what exactly this blog is going to focus on, I've atleast realized that writing about articles that have already been written about is:

1. Quite boring for the readers.
2. Quite boring for me.
3. Nearly useless for anything that I or any reader would want to accomplish.

So if you're like me and want to get things done, I'm sure you'll like the next step I'm going to take.

My real passion in life is songwriting, and so, this blog will develope into just that- a blog about songwriting.

Whether you're a lonely kid at home with a six-string or an improvisational jazz maestro, I invite you to learn, share, and create.

The Revival of a Frontman

The gritty frontman John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival is back in action.

And it's a pretty exciting revival if you think about it.

Any band who can pack 13 hit singles within short four year period has my respect.

The ingenious aspect of CCR was their ability to emphasize rustic backgrounds while still staying within the realms of the rock genre.

Not only did they stay within those boundaries, but they also, surprisingly, provided the raw, gritty sounds that have remained as a staple to rock music ever since.

John Fogerty has recently released his solo album "Revival" and has begun performing.

Jonathan Perry comments on the concert in his article A powerhouse revival for a classic-rock icon: The cumulative effect was a masterful, triumphant concert that fused Fogerty's spirit, songs, and showmanship into an indomitable, indelible whole.

One should expect nothing less from this man, a living legend.

Back To Our Roots

It's probably not quite as important as returning back to your root note, but Sasha Frere-Jones makes an interesting point.

In A Paler Shade of White, she describes her experience and observations of a rather successful Indie rock band, Arcade Fire, whom she criticized as missing the mark.

While I've never seen the band myself, Arcade Fire does exactly what most bands now do.

They play.

Yes, well, of course they do.

That's precisely the problem. Their music is lost in the commotion.

Creating a balance that individualizes notes (or beats) while still managing to keep those patterns intertwined is exactly what occurred in rock-and-roll and blues music, the roots of every subgenre in guitar-wanking goodness that has ever existed.

Artistic expression is what makes music great, but music must exist in order to provide a foundation for that expression.

The Initiation

Hi everyone. This the first post I'll be making for The Sound Byte- with many more to come. Obviously there isn't much content up at this point, but it wont be that way for long. I'll continue to add various accounts of nearly everything related to our beloved Rock music. Hopefully this process will gather enough people to create a community for those people who are serious about the genre. I won't make this post too long; philosophy will show up later, no doubt. Take it easy and rock on.