Bleed Sound

My name is Troy Chamberlain and I am currently 24 years old and a senior at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. Despite the tumultuous state of the field currently, I am majoring in print journalism and am just beginning to get a grasp on the concepts of online publishing, so bear with me on this.

From the moment I became self-aware I have been fascinated with music, making it natural my writing would choose this Art form as its focus; and I believe parallels can be found between the two. The late, ‘50s Beat writer Jack Kerouac was one of many to suggest these similarities as he described his writings as being shaped by the “… breastpocket notebook in which they are written, like the form of a set number of bars in a jazz blues chorus …” and, though Kerouac’s writing was rooted in fiction and improvisational poetry, his words can offer inspiration to any aspiring music journalist today, and tomorrow.

Writing has its own rhythm, though it is barely noticed consciously. It has its own crescendos and diminuendos; it has moments of staccato fact pronunciations for effect, like precise cymbal strikes in a song; it has alternating choruses of vivid imagery and structural verses of hard information. Music and writing are good bedfellows; I’m more than happy to play Cupid.

Where genres are concerned, I am in many ways omniverous in my musical intake, though my focus falls largely on blues, bluegrass, folk and reggae, as well as creative forms of ambient-influenced rock. I admit that I struggle to be receptive to rap, though I do commend the rhythmic rhyming qualities of some of its lyrics. Long story short it’s just not my jive, so I’ll leave the rap game to those more appreciative of its virtues.

I am also a bit of a musician myself, with most experience in percussion and blues harp, though I began playing guitar at the close of 2010 and have been pouring myself into its secrets ever since. The sharp callouses tipping my fingers act as testament.

I am constantly seeking new and creative musical expressions and through this blog I will highlight those I come across which intrigue me most. If you know of any acts I should become privy to, I warmly invite you to bait me toward them.

Music will never create a cure for cancer or develop a new form of energy, but it will also never lead to advanced chemical weapons or stronger nuclear missiles. Some play down the importance of music. I ask them to for one minute imagine a world without it. If you ask me, it is one of our greatest accomplishments and when done well it has a purity and universal appeal with which few other artistic mediums can compete.

Keep music alive.

Bleed sound.