“Timepiece”
Releasing: October 20th, 2023
Catalog Number: MMLB Music Publishing/Tiny Attic Records/MMO004
Management/Publicity/Radio Promotion/Distribution
Kari Estrin Management (Nashville, TN)
www.kariestrin.com
(website) http://matthewmorganmusic.com
Robert Colgan photography 2021
Robert Colgan photography 2021
Robert Colgan photography 2021
Robert Colgan photography 2021
Robert Colgan photography 2021
Timepiece 2023 Press Photos (right click to download high quality image)
Timepiece CD - 2023 Download |
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Click HERE to download a free Hi-res digital copy of the NEW album, “Timepiece” for press only (wav files).
-releasing 2023
Refusing to be labeled, or pigeon-holed into folk stereotypes Matthew Morgan joins the ranks of similar progressive singer songwriters such as Aimee Mann, Crys Matthews, and Orville Peck. With a warm tenor voice floating above delicate arrangements his songs feel less like stories than paintings. Popdose writes, “There's something significant about a poignant troubadour who leaves his heart on the table and bares his soul without reserve.”
Matthew released his debut CD with Chicago’s acoustic indie label, CAUDog Records in 2012 immediately going on tour around the Midwest and Southern US states in cohort with his band, The Lost Brigade. The touring resulted in sold out shows headlining at Chicago's famous Double Door nightclub and House of Blues and opportunities to share the stage with more notorious acts at music festivals including opening for Dave Davies (The Kinks) and Company of Thieves at Taste of Lincoln Ave (Chicago) and SXSW (Austin) in 2013.
Seeking a more introspective sound to his song craft Morgan parted ways with The Lost Brigade in 2014 and recorded a new solo EP that was released independently the following year titled, ‘Empathy For Inanimate Objects’. Empathy as a whole was very well received and Morgan garnered his first published reviews and the inclusion in the "Best of 2015" by the Nashville Music Guide while drawing comparisons to artists like Elliott Smith and Tom Brosseau.
However, things were about to change radically in both good and bad ways. A new relationship would blossom into marriage, but the joyfulness of newfound love would be stifled by the grief of losing a parent to illness, further compounded by the global pandemic. Like many artists, Matthew would take this time off to look inward and take stock of the things that really matter. The result of this reflection would be a brand new album, 'Timepiece' composed of songs crafted as a testament; a time capsule to document the highs and lows of living through one of the most challenging and significant periods in modern history.
Recorded over the span of three years with producer, Jay Alton (Columbus, OH) and featuring local musicians “Timepiece” stands as an eye witness account to the turbulent discord of American life lived during the early twenty-first century. It boldly speaks to the division of a country on political and social issues such as institutionalized racial violence, gender and sexual liberty and freedom of expression, incidents of mass violence, and political derision bordering on insanity, all of which simmering to a boiling point under the backdrop of the worst global pandemic experienced in a century.
But, despite it's somber subject matter Morgan manages to encapsulate the songs’ narratives in his easy going style of storytelling honed over years of song craft. The music pulls you in from start to finish like an old friend and only after you’ve signed on do you realize the strength of the message.
On lead single ‘Isolation’ Matthew confesses “I always thought I'd rather be a critic of society” and then quickly reminds us that “with the whole world forced to stay inside the things we love the most are still outside”. The ten song album is a tour-de-force in social justice songrwiting and doesn't shy away from topics like gender identity in the beautifully landscaped ballad, “Sunny”, or a punchy reminder that black lives still matter in “The Good Life”. Overall, the album achieves it's goal of stopping the clock on a culture that seems to have sometimes gone mad and reminds us that we all have an obligation to be the change we need in the world.
Under The Gun Review - Interview "Empathy is folky Americana done right and serves as one of this year’s strongest undiscovered releases." - (July 23, 2015)
PopDose - EP Review "His cover of Sam & Dave’s hit “Hold On, I’m Coming” is in second position and gets a backwoods makeover that, while indistinguishable from the original arrangement, contains a sense of urgency and danger, which makes it a stellar reimagining." - (July 2, 2015)
Nashville Music Guide - EP Review "I could listen all day and all night. Empathy for Inanimate Objects has become my mantra for writing. It is, I do believe, the best album I’ve reviewed this year." - (Sheryl Craig, June 14, 2015)
