IVOR Novello Award-winning Wolverhampton musician Scott Matthews tells his tales of The Great Untold, his sixth studio album, at Leeds Brudenell Social Club tonight.
Recorded over a productive winter at home, his ten-song cycle is rooted in honesty, instinct and reflection, wherein the ghosts of Paul Simon, Tim Buckley, Nick Drake and John Martyn loom large on a stripped-back record.
Matthews is freshly married, soon to experience fatherhood and has new hopes and fears, new stories to tell. "After Home Part 2 was finished, I was looking to move forward by marrying harmony with my experiences since the last record," he says. "The plan to write an acoustic record has always been there. And finally the time is right to do that.”
The album artwork for Scott Matthews' The Great Untold
Matthews had started as a soloist and, having gone full circle, is ready to fly alone again on such songs as Something Real, As The Day Passes, Song To A Wallflower and Cinnamon. "It takes me out of my comfort zone and has made me test myself," he says.
"I’ve largely pared it down to guitar and vocals. At the beginning, there was nobody else. It’s time to surprise myself. It’s time to go back to my own world."
Lyrically, The Great Untold is a work with poetic intent. "It’s a collection of songs that lots of people will hopefully relate to. Naturally, my starting points are from a personal perspective but most times I have to broaden the idea so it's not so insular as a piece of music," says Matthews.
"It’s time to surprise myself. It’s time to go back to my own world," says Scott Matthews
"It can be a challenge but I'm very proud of where I've ventured to and there's been a lot of soul searching woven into these songs that I hope people will appreciate. When I’m writing, I’m almost hearing voices from the masters and thinking: ‘Would they approve?’.”
His wish is to make a connection. "I want to move somebody with the power of moods and music," he reasons, so why not connect with Scott Matthews tonight at 8pm? Tickets are on sale via brudenellsocialclub.co.uk or on the door from 7.30pm.
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