Songs for You. . .and me too

(this is a repost from my myspace blog, but I thought ya'll might get something out of it too)

Hey guys,

I've been working hard writing and recording over the last month or two, and being on the cusp of putting out a new CD (Jan. 29th ;o) always makes me evaluate and consider the artform of songwriting. I think this notion can be applied to many fields of the arts, but since I have the most experience with music/songwriting, I'll talk about that :o)

I try to write in ways that challenge my way of thinking - musically, sonically, lyrically. . .all of those elements can spark the beginning to an either excellent or average song. More importantly though, I believe, is the consideration of who the ultimate listener is once the song is finished. Sometimes, that person is just me - therefore, I have 100% complete freedom of expression and can be as concrete or abstract lyrically and musically as I would like.

The other scenario that occurs is that I am writing a song for me, but other people that I don't even know act as the ultimate listeners - as you can imagine, sometimes that can be an intimidating feat. This upcoming CD, "Passerby" has been in the making for about 2 years - I really wanted to make sure that I had written a group of songs that were genuine, but could also be relateable. That's not to say that every artist should do that by any means (some of my favorite songwriters only had themselves in mind as the ultimate listener and they've made history!), my personality is such that I do. If you end up picking up the CD, I'd be interested to hear your opinion. . .

So, to sum up - I think it's just as challenging (and rewarding) to make great art as it is to make great art that is stimulating, yet attainable. What do you think?

Matt
P.S. - sorry for the very apparent ramblings and non sequiturs in this stream of consciousness blog! ha ha