Though he just started to pursue his music career in the last few years, singer/songwriter Matt Ryd has had the good fortune to make large strides in a short amount of time. His debut full-length Looking for Home was just released in September but Ryd has been rubbing elbows with fame since his song “Healed” was featured in an episode of Scrubs from season 8 and Felicia Day from Dr. Horrible’s Sing a long blog tweeted about one of his YouTube videos (among which there are a number of pretty fabulous covers).
Having garnered the attention to be featured on a Scrubs soundtrack most can probably imagine the sound that Ryd delivers- lighthearted in melody and slightly heartbroken-yet-hopeful in lyrics with the resulting combination teetering on the line of indie rock and today’s version of boy band pop- which by no means is a bad thing. Looking for Home is jaunty to say the least, dripping in xylophone and perky acoustic strums, paired with boy-girl harmonies and lyrics doting on a nameless someone with whom, “there’s nothing I can’t do/ As long as I’m with you” (“For So Long”). Bubbles of synth-y samples push a lot of Looking for Home into the same realm as more recent Plain White T’s, Matt Hires and Val Emmich, but Looking for Home closers “Over You” and “When I Fall” steer things into a slightly darker realm, showing Ryd does have a little more to bring to the table, despite most of this full-length sounding pretty safely contained.
If you think any of these comparisons are insulting, then chances are the home Matt’s full-length is looking for isn’t your CD collection. But whether you’re a fan of his niche or not, you can’t deny that Matt has got a some nice pipes, a way with hooky melody and is sure charm at least a few thousand girls in his time as a musician.
Matt Ryd will be playing Jane Thatcher’s CD release show at the Viaduct Theater along with The Steadfast Acrobats and The Handcuffs on November 20th. Show starts at 9pm, $10.
Ryd recently talked with Reviewsic about Looking for Home, how he’s grown as a musician and what he hopes to do with his music in the coming year.
Reviewsic: What are your current top three musical influences? Are there any bands/musicians/things in general that you feel will always be a constant influence?
Matt Ryd: It’s tough to say who my specific musical influences are. Honestly, I find my songs are primarily informed by whatever is going on in the pop music universe. I unabashedly consider myself a pop/rock songwriter, and I completely love the uber-catchy tunes that you hear on Top 40. Specifically, I’ve been really enjoying the new Katy Perry album, as well as all of Ke$ha’s singles. As for all-time
influences? Back when I only knew how to play piano, Billy Joel and Elton John convinced me that it was a fun and cool instrument. I picked up an acoustic guitar for the first time after Napster-ing “The General” by Dispatch, and that group’s records still impact my love of vocal harmonies in pop/rock (as do all of Simon & Garfunkel’s old records). And my time in my college a cappella group, Northwestern Purple Haze, led to a huge period of growth in terms of my musicality and my vocal control.
Reviewsic: Sting, among others, once released his lyrics on their own as poetry. Do you think that’s something you would ever do/would your lyrics hold up in that separate format?
Matt Ryd: I wouldn’t ever want to release my lyrics on their own, because they are part of a whole. My idea whenever I write a song is that the melody, lyrics, instrumentation, and performance all work together to evoke a specific feeling. That said, I spend more time focusing on lyrics than on any other aspect of songwriting, and I am very proud of them. I like to think that they stand alone, in that no one would read them and think, “Oh… that’s what he’s singing? That’s so stupid!”
Reviewsic: What are the last three albums or bands you listened to?
Matt Ryd: Looking at my iPod, the last three albums that I listened to start-to-finish were “Allison Weiss Was Right All Along”, “Raw” by Josh Damigo, and “Maybe Tonight” by Mike Mentzer. I tend to spend a lot of time listening to indie songwriters or groups with whom I’ve had the chance to interact. In terms of single songs, though, I’ve been spinning a ton of “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry and “Dynamite” by Taio Cruz. And whenever I’m feeling down, I always put on “My Life Would Suck Without You” by Kelly Clarkson. I’m telling you, I’m a complete sucker for catchy pop music.
Reviewsic: If you could work with one person in the music industry (musician, label, producer etc), who would it be and why?
Matt Ryd: It would have to be Matt Nathanson. First of all, I love his songs–”Falling Apart” off of his last album may very well be my favorite song of all time. Also, based on his stage demeanor, I’m pretty sure that he’s just an incredibly fun guy. If you haven’t had a chance to catch one of his shows, his inter-song banter is as entertaining as his music, and I can just imagine that the two of us would have a blast hanging out, performing, or recording.
Reviewsic: Who are three of your favorite local bands? Were you involved in the local music in your hometown growing up?
Matt Ryd: I didn’t really start actively pursuing music until a few years ago, so I wasn’t heavily into the local scene when I was younger. I had friends in bands, and I played in a few groups off and on (and would occasionally gig at coffeeshops and release self-produced-in-my-parents’-basement CDs), but I wasn’t super-involved with local music. Ever since I started playing in Chicago, however, I have had the chance to get to know a large group of local musicians, and I absolutely love Chicago’s music scene.
Two of my favorite acts were the openers at my CD release show: Mike Mentzer and a duo called Little Light. Other than that, I’ve been really digging what Jesse Christenson has been doing with his project, The Aesthetic; I’ve been listening to some State & Madison; I’m really looking forward to I Fight Dragons’ new EP; and I’m convinced that my friend Heather Styka is one of the best songwriters in the world, so I’m hoping that she makes a new record super-soon.
Reviewsic: If you could book a tour with any 3 bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Matt Ryd: When people ask me to describe my sound, I always say that I sound like a mixture of Simon & Garfunkel, Rilo Kiley, and Journey. I think it would be amazing to actually tour with that lineup. Although Steve Perry would have to front Journey. Accept no substitutes.
Reviewsic: Tell us about Looking for Home- Did any particular theme or concept go into writing the record? What do you hope listeners take away from these songs?
Matt Ryd: I like to think that ‘Looking For Home’ is a great quarter-life-crisis album. The central theme of all of the songs is an examination of the self: a search for a feeling of peace or contentment, be that in friendships, romantic relationships, family, faith, etc. As for what listeners take away–my hope is that they hear a part of themselves in the music. I try to write my lyrics in a way that very clearly describes an emotion, but leaves the specifics of the situation extremely vague. For example, I wrote a song about a crisis of faith (I was raised in a super-Christian family, but now don’t really subscribe to any of those beliefs), and a fan wrote and told me that he felt like it perfectly applied to a recent breakup, and that he listened to it on repeat as he tried to move on from a failed relationship. And I love that–I love the idea that people can find meaning in the songs that I’ve never considered.
Reviewsic: How would you compare yourself as a musician at this point as opposed to when you first began writing music?
Matt Ryd: Wow. I barely know where to start explaining the differences. Someday, I’ll have to re-record my first song and stream it for anyone curious to hear how much of a difference ten years of songwriting practice makes. The biggest leap in growth occurred when I realized that it was okay to revise songs. Originally, I would agonize over every note and lyric, thinking that writing it on paper was akin to carving it in stone. I’m now much more liberal during the initial writing process, and I’ll often go through four or five drafts of a song before I consider it “finished”. The primary focus of the rewrites is the lyrics, but I’ve had several songs where I’ve decided that a verse melody or rhythm doesn’t work and I ended up changing it completely.
Reviewsic: What are some of your favorite cities and/or venues to play?
Matt Ryd: I toured the east coast of the U.S. this summer, and Boston, New York, and Washington D.C. were all great cities to play. I was welcomed very warmly, and it was a lot of fun to meet and perform for my fans out there. Around Chicago, my favorite venue is Schubas. It’s intimate, yet large enough to hold a good 200+ crowd. The sound engineers are incredible, the stage is gorgeous, the staff is extremely
welcoming–it’s just my ideal venue in multiple ways. There are times when it can be really fun to play a super-intimate show, however. The back room of Uncommon Ground was the first place I performed in Chicago, and it still has a really special place in my heart. It only holds around 20 or 30 people, and it gives me the opportunity to have a true interaction with the audience.
Reviewsic: Do you have a pre-show ritual, or anything specific you like to do before you play live?
Matt Ryd: Heh, no. Nothing in particular. I’m sorry that this answer is so boring!
Reviewsic: What are your plans for music in the next year?
Matt Ryd: I intend to continue promoting ‘Looking For Home’ and touring in support of it later in the year. Recording this album has also taught me that I prefer to work on a few songs at a time, rather than spend years slaving away on a larger record. Before the year ends, I would like to start releasing digital singles, steadily trickling out music so that people can always be listening to something new.
Tags: covers, Interview, New Music, recent release, Upcoming Show, Video
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