Since his sophomore year, Maxx Cockrum, senior, has held an interest in music, considering it to be one of his favorite hobbies.

“But it’s always just been fun to hang out with my friends and make music.” Cockrum said.

Having taken several of the music-based courses at MHS — Guitar 1 and 2, Music Theory, and Music Production — Cockrum decided to join Rock Band as a guitarist, a club where he and several other students are given a space to practice music together.

“Mainly, making [songs] with my friends is fun, ” Cockrum said. “I get to apply the stuff I learned in my other classes.”

Despite starting late last year, the club gained popularity during the 2024-2025 school year, said Sean Schierbecker, music teacher.

“This year is the first year we’ve got a bunch of groups going,” Schierbecker said.

Members were put into five separate groups based on shared music tastes and created their own bands. From there, they picked a name and were allowed to either perform covers of known songs or write their own pieces.

While some bands have established names, such as a group called “Reverb,” which has plans to perform outside of school, others are still deciding.

“There is no limitation, there is no organization in which they are required to do something,” Schierbecker said. “They come in and do, pretty much, what they want to do.”

Schierbecker said clubs such as Rock Band are essential for students who want to form bonds with people that share their interests.

“Finding those like-minded people that their schedules didn’t match up with, but they know they want to meet other people and find that,” Schierbecker said.

Sophomore James Dooley, who has been playing drums for eight years, joined the club to improve his skills in performing with other people.

“We’re looking forward to performing a few songs in April, and just get more used to playing our instruments together,” Dooley said.

Dooley’s band, which is currently unnamed, is working on playing two separate songs: “Hurts Like Heaven” by Coldplay and “Doesn’t Remind Me” by Audioslave.

Dooley said what he has enjoyed most about the club is the chance to meet new people.

“It’s a good learning experience and a good way to meet other people,” Dooley said. “It gives you other people’s perspective on how to play stuff.”

This story was originally published on Marquette Messenger on December 19, 2024.