A week ago, I had never heard of Matt York. Too bad for me. I am all about music that I can listen do while doing absolutely anything. I want to be able to listen to it while I’m happy, bawling my eyes out, driving to an interview, writing a 24-page paper or while readying myself for a girls’ night out. “Mine” has proven to be one of those CDs.
I have been listening to the CD on repeat for 3 hours now, and I’m fine with that. Nothing has bothered me, and I haven’t skipped a single song. Cool, huh? While it is clear that Matt York does not yet have the stature of Gavin DeGraw, I am not quite sure why. The slight rasp to his voice allows him to sing with natural soul, but it doesn’t hinder him from relaxing and letting his voice go. The perfect example of this can be heard in Those Days, the sixth track on “Mine,” and also my favorite song on the CD. Another great song on the disc is Tomorrow. The use of horns and York’s lyrics give it a jazzy vibe, all while keeping the pop-rock thing alive, almost like a very toned down Blood, Sweat & Tears number.
His music is honest. Matt York doesn’t waste precious disc space with random thoughts about clubs, alcohol, or half-naked women. Because I don’t think that I can do it justice, I will copy a tidbit from his thank you letter to those that bought his CD and have supported him throughout his musical career. It describes what the album means to him, and what he hopes it means to his listeners.
–> “Music has a funny way of grabbing people and helping them relate to their own lives. This album is a testament to the fact that no matter what happens, no matter how far away the things that you used to hold dear have floated, you always have the ability to take them back and make them your own once again. Everything is within reach.”
Honest much? I would say so…and he didn’t even mention anything about liquid courage. York’s music does indeed have a way of relating to peoples’ lives. My advice to you? Head to his MySpace page by clicking here and fall in love with his music. Next, go to iTunes and buy the album.
P.S: While the song Hey Love is not on his newest CD, I definitely recommend that you check it out. It sounds like a fusion of John Mayer and Gavin DeGraw. Enough said.
HauteThought 
Why have I never heard of him??? Great music. Great article too Annie!
i have honestly never heard of this fellow, but i like him a LOT. each song on his myspace has a unique quality to it… from just acoustic to guitar and piano to a horn section, or even a cappella, my attention was grabbed and kept by every song. my favorite song, at least on his myspace, was definitely “those days.” it had a gavin degraw-esque feel to it, but i think i liked it even more. why? a better blend of more instruments. even though his a cappella song “death came a knockin'” proved that his voice can stand alone, his layered instrumentation and tasteful blend of piano, guitar, and violin made the song stand out from those of other similar sounding artist. looking at it now, it’s interesting to note that “those days” has the least amount of views on his page.
LISTEN TO IT, PEOPLES. i can guarantee once won’t be enough.
I really like “Hey Love”! I also like his voice quality. He sounds brighter than John Mayer and more lyrical than Gavin Degraw, but most of all I liked the fact that he has his own unique perspective despite the fact that he might remind people of other artists. Thank you for introducing me to him, Annie! 🙂
I definitely cannot go into the whole musical quality like Chris can, but I really enjoyed the music. I can’t believe I haven’t heard him before.
Great job!
” I haven’t skipped a single song” is an INTENSE testament to make when it comes to an album…most artists are yet to prove their ability to stay versatile and keep my heart and mind enraptured. This being said, most musical reviews leave something to be desired (and try far too hard to make ‘sophisticated’ but unfortunately unrelatable references ) but you seamlessly capture Matt’s essence as an artist AND make me want to open up another Safari browser to start listening !! Off I go! 🙂
I’m back…….and I’m sold. Lyrically captivating – and instrumental orchestration on the tracks is great. From your ears to this article..and back to my very perked up ears! I’m forwarding this to my friends! May I suggest Tyrone Wells (http://www.myspace.com/tyronewells) – a talent BEYOND talent, a true musician. Even at first listen, I notice the stylistic similarities between him and Matt York – he is another one in need of widespread recognition by critics and audiences alike!
I really like the song “Lucky Man”, and I think that “Those Days” is my favorite song on the album too! Yes…I did download the CD from itunes after reading your article. Great job Annie!
The biggest thing that I noticed when listening to the music was that Matt York’s music is always grounded in a groove. But the thing that keeps his music interesting (and granted, I’ve only been to the MySpace page and haven’t heard all of his CD so I don’t know for sure that this is the case) is that the “groove” could be any number of grooves. He goes from gospel in “Death Came A Knockin'” to the big band jazz-esque (and I absolutely agree with your Blood, Sweat & Tears comment, Annie! I couldn’t have said it better!) funky groove with the greatest ease that makes this listener say, “Well, what else can he do?” The best part is that it doesn’t sound like he’s trying to do something that he can’t; it’s just as natural for him to sing gospel as it is for him to sing backed by a full band, or with a simple guitar accompaniment.
What a great find, Annie! Love it and love you 🙂
First off, I love your article because I can hear you saying it in my head. And second, every comment you made left me very curious to hear who this captivating person is. Listening to the YouTube clip on your post satisfied my curiosity. A mix of John Mayer and Gavin, he is definitely a force to be reckoned with!
And I’m in love. AWESOME description of his music. it was perfect!
Sorry it has taken me so long to write on your blog, BUT, I really like this.
He does sound like John Mayer–I jumped to the music before reading the article, OPPS!–but hopefully not as big of a douche as john mayer.
Oh just to clear things up, I did read your article, and it was music-tastic.
Screw people with weird last names like something that rhymes with beagle.
Hi there!
Nice find, thanks. He reminds me A LOT of Marc Broussard. If You haven’t heard him, check him out.
http://www.myspace.com/marcbroussard
thanks for letting me know of Matt York.
R.