It’s not everyday that you see artists create a feel and a genre that you have never heard. Most times, these genres are unsuccessful of being heard because they are godawful. That is not the case for this artist. Matthew Santos is a two time Grammy nominee soul/folk/indie rock artist from Chicago, IL. This man has been privately told by Justin Timberlake that he has a great voice and has had extensive conversations with Rhianna and JayZ. When artists like these reach out to congratulate a musician on his talent, you know they aren’t messing around.
This 14 track EP was released on June 2nd and it is great. This musician is seasoned and has his own inner tone. The feel he has is very genuine sounding and he has the sound of a powerful artist. The album can be compared to the works from artists like Jeff Buckley, Matt Corby, Bon Iver and Paulo Nutini. The drums in this album really influence the feel and extenuates the resonance of the tracks. The track (and publicly released single) Seven Years is one my personal favorites on the album. This song features a technique called the “bell-curve dynamic”. The song starts off with a gentle beat and a quieter melody and as the verses move on, the dynamics evolve into a powerful track. As the song begins to end, the song becomes weaker until it is finished.
Having listened to the album straight through, I can recommend that most people should do the same. The album has an energy to it that can best be heard listening to the songs in the order of the album. Each track flows like butter into the next and really is pleasing to listen to.
How does an artist accomplish a sound like this? The answer is simply exposure.
In 2008 Matthew Santos’ world had undergone a drastic change with the international success of his “Superstar” collaboration with Lupe Fiasco.
Rihanna, upon meeting Santos at the beginning of the Kanye West Glow in the Dark tour, explained “My manager and I have had extensive conversations about your voice.”. Soon there after, suddenly finding himself shaking hands with Jay-Z backstage at the Nokia Theatre while he congratulated Santos on his success, and then running into Justin Timberlake casually affirming, “You have a great voice.”—it seemed Santos’ was being heard by the biggest names in music with the similar result each time: Praise. John Legend, Eddie Vedder, and Kimbra have all commented on separate occasions upon hearing Santos that he has “a beautiful voice…”.
This success caused Matthew Santos to be exposed to more profound musicians and it helped him develop his extensive tone.
I highly, highly recommend this artist and for your courtesy, I have included the public single, Seven Years, below. Enjoy!