Music surrounds students every day, whether it be in a music class or just by listening to it on one’s own. Some people listen to music, some people play music, and some people even make their own music.
For roughly 10 years, junior Noah Oppenhuizen has been perfecting his abilities on the drums. Although, recently, he has also been working on his vocals with metal screams, and he seems to be getting pretty good at it.
With his role as the drummer in his band, possibly being named Cryptology, Noah’s main job is to keep the rest of the members in time while playing. While also assisting in the production of the band’s music, Noah has been planning on pursuing a career in music production when going to college.
“I’ve been on-and-off drumming for 10 years,” Noah said, “but these past few years, I’ve been hyper-focused on being the best drummer I can be; it’s definitely working. I got into music production in December of 2020 and have still been doing small projects as a hobby since then.”
The bassist of the band, sophomore Logan Cook, has been introduced to his love of metal music by his dad. Originally, Logan’s father taught him how to play bass, which grew their connection to a closer level.
By way of his dad showing him his love for music, Logan was led to join a band where he could express his love through instrumental means. Having such a strong connection with music and his emotions allows him to get fully into the music he plays and creates.
“[My relationship with my dad through music] has grown stronger,” Logan said. “He is the reason that I listen to metal music so much and the reason I got into both bass and guitar. Having [our love for music] is another thing that we are able to bond together with.”
Lead singer of the band Hangman, previously named Phlox, freshman Mary Maddox decided to join in late August of 2022 when they had released many rock songs.
Mary decided to join the band after taking lessons, originally on the piano but then changed her pursuit of music to the form of vocal expression.
“I had taken piano lessons at Red Rose Music Lab,” Mary said, “and I sang along to the song ‘I Won’t Back Down’ as I was playing. The teacher said my tone and pitch were perfect for a band they had at the studio, and they needed a singer, so he asked if I would sing with them, and so I said yes.”
Although Hangman hasn’t produced any of their own songs due to the complexity of the activity, that doesn’t make them any less talented. Mary has performed alongside her band at Horrocks, a garden market, and opened for another band at Blandford Nature Center.
On the other hand, Logan and Noah have original songs in the works. They have been working together to make songs to play for future—unplanned—performances, along with their already rehearsed covers.
“We don’t perform yet,” Noah said, “because we’re still trying to find time to rehearse covers and also make songs, but once we have all that down, I would be stoked to perform at a venue. We’ve decided to start with covers to get used to our sound and styles of playing, but Logan, [the bass of the band], and I started writing a song together that we can’t wait to finish and add guitar and vocals to.”
All three of these people have a good chunk of their everyday lives dedicated to their music. Even though they aren’t all planning on pursuing their love later on in life, that doesn’t change their amount of expression in the art.
So, if a person is ever looking for a way to support their peers in their endeavors, attending these people’s expression would be one of the best, and easiest, ways to do it. It’s one thing to enjoy music, but it is another thing to get in front of a group of people and display that level of enjoyment.
“It’s sort of like nothing else exists,” Logan said, “except the song and the music going on when I’m playing, and it’s overall just fun.”
