Matt Costa

0:00Like I've heard you will go up to people if someone comes up to you after a show and says like I didn't hear that song You'll play if the guitar is nearby You'll love the acoustic and play it for them. So it must be interesting as as you two or more and add new songs to the repertoire how You certain songs will always stay in the setlist because you know people want to hear them. Yeah What are some of those songs and how do you know when songs are working and when they're not? Oh Just I like to play on this tour. I've been playing a lot of songs off the first record a lot of people like that first record and Songs we sing is the name of it. Oh and people I don't know. It's the furthest from what I've done now as far as time wise And so people kind of aren't expecting a lot of those songs. So I this time I've been making point to play a

0:50The good six I have six songs really so it's interesting you decide to go back when you have a new record up So our songs off like unfamiliar faces in Chateau going away No, there's I just try like two songs off on familiar faces and maybe two some two or three songs off mobile Chateau But and then all the songs up the new record all of them. Yeah, you're playing. Oh wow That's an interesting because not every band does that every band will take every song from New record make sure it's part of the set Yeah, I do that actually that's why every time I come out and do a tour I make sure I play every song So therefore when the record comes out you can hear every song and that's why I'm not playing so much off the last record because last time I came through I played every song and more often any time before that

1:37I played every song off the second record And so I feel like it's time to go back and play more songs off Like Yeah, playing off so every time I come through when I do a tour I make sure that all the songs off the record and then This time I've been playing songs off the first record a lot of people Some people got to me and they haven't been coming out since that first record To show us I'm happy to play a bunch of songs, you know It's a music's meant to take people back to those places

2:24See your ear performer that's it's all for like whatever the family is not about like the I'm gonna play my set Doesn't matter what they sound like I'm happy with it. Yeah, well, no I mean the that's the new songs, you know, I get a kick at it the new songs because You know a lot of the new songs people don't know those ones as well. So that's my That's my How did for that and playing old songs to us nice because I changed him up a little bit It wasn't crazy, but trying different ways of approaching Well the whole time I've been learning fingers down I Think all that I just you know just more like

3:20Yeah, I'm just like even with that and different to me just kind of further along See yeah I was playing the songs differently. Yeah, I'm thinking I change them up a little bit, you know because you can't do it Yeah Yeah It works better for the energy

4:26It depends my night, you know, okay depends on way you know the beat ones or the people can tap their feet to people always like so Shotgun people like that one. It's gonna be what is a shot medication? What is it? Oh man? It's just like a quick little thing. Yeah, I mean it happens fast Yeah, so explain it though. I saw that there So it moved it Yeah, it's probably like So

5:15You know I think You know in the lyrics they're I can't give it away because of the lesson It's less than do you like that they like the mistake in the mystery of songs and not kind of tell the stories now Stories about something and then some I like to be a little more fake Because they're more personal and you feel deep connection to them or because Some song just come out. There is a good story sometimes Well probably just because certain ones Certain ones have different backstories to them. It's all a lot of times

6:00I'll tell the back story which isn't necessarily saying what the song is about just saying where I was out on our road Which I think is interesting. It's kind of just you know Where you at when you painted a certain painting or something an artist a city you're in and what we're doing We're the other place the other place studio in the space I have a little cabin that I write in like it's a little room addition Add a crew and then I go to I like writing music up there Do you know where really though? I don't I just have to be in the right State of my all right some songs on the road. I'll try to write one Two three four. I don't know maybe I try to write a handful on the road Just to keep the brain going right and then the momentum So what you might do I'm gonna do that today?

6:47Because I like that if you don't do it enough It's way yeah, that's our key here So when you say you're gonna write a song you have because you know you're gonna do it You go with it with any frequency notions of I have a theme or I have maybe a melody or a chord that I'm gonna start with Sometimes I have today today. I've been working up the seventh. I have like fought to I wrote down 10 for like one Lot of words And I figured it would be nice to make a song based on each word So I've already got this song titles and I'm just gonna write a song They don't you know based on the song titles that have like so maybe those interesting Yeah, you know try it out. It's like more just to keep the brain going and if and if and and let it

7:34It's a two-o fourth sub-con just to come out what do you learn as a runner? I mean I know some people can write about some people can't you say you can do it what I'm gonna do? Yeah, right some people just like to just lock them right now and say you know such a The monotony of the hotel van venue hotel is just thinking they can't pull it off. It seems you can't so I'm wondering Shit where they hold my question why? What you learn is a songwriter it has in the business sense like doing this as a job full-time I'm still wanting to you know like playing this game brain Every song titles and then saying our song for me to these titles like how do you keep pushing yourselves a writer? Oh Just like that, you know maybe and learning yeah and just learning stuff and I

8:23Don't know just being inspired by stuff, you know going I'm having going to different museums being around other musicians being around other people and seeing stuff you like and Stuff that moves you don't want to do something sometimes You know a lot of it too to feeling passionately about situations that happen to you they bubble up inside of you And then you kind of get up sometimes it takes years sometimes it takes A day, you know for that feeling to come out So I think there's a lot of things that have happened to me throughout Previous years in my life that I have been ever written about so I just waiting for them to come to the surface

9:14and But they'll take shape with something that I haven't experienced yet, you know or something maybe that draws me pulls the dude together So I think that's kind of things just you're always the inspiration The ideas are always there the things I was going around But you just have to be there to catch it when it goes right and what about becoming a character who you you said you You turn the character when you're running songs from time How do you know when it's time to become a character and put yourself out of your not be mad? Oh, well, it's more like a possession They get you know you get possessed So you didn't even know it's just like you're off like yeah Yeah, you just kind of it's nothing that you got to try to turn off or turn on it just sort of for me

10:03It just comes like all of a sudden thing It's you know, it's like a kid when they're sitting around and they're when they're when they're playing superheroes with something They're not thinking I'm gonna turn I'm gonna like I'm hanging out now and now they have to go like If they think like I'm gonna turn to a superhero. They just do you know I mean they just become or they become whatever it is They've all of them they be kind of think they don't think themselves. I'm gonna turn this off or on It's a pure emotion that makes them want to do that That's it is okay. So this happens and you go to a piano and you go to a guitar typically Or whatever's around sometimes it is, you know, I just go to a device to record Okay, so I make sure I have that device to put it's phone or recorder or this different things

10:50So the first thing is make sure I have a thing to record and then I sing into that or whatever I hum a melody or a piano line or guitar line And then I'll go to whatever's you know guitar or something at hand and then a piano and then Drop your own or something Lots of horns lately in recent years Funny Right A lot of people seem to be gravitating at least to his name When talking about cinematic horns kind of feel like Singing from our new piece of Canadian man. You're made man. It's got a solo record We were talking a lot of them about the horns And so what why why and you know why those films why

11:38Why why see such a big influence to musicians? 30 40 years later, I think Well, I got you know, I've known those films, you know, some of them at least but I never one knows Couldn't bad ugly sound, you know, song but yeah, I had a I talked to producer, I worked with Tony to get in here He was really into it. He's like, yeah, I'm imagining these landscapes, you know, and imagining Things being inspired by the perhaps and stuff like that and that's what a lot of these music is and you know stuff kind of embodies these Cinematic things that are sometimes it's yeah, it's more visual than it is

12:30Audio or audible. It's obviously It's great to visual So I think that's probably why in every as a songwriter that's kind of ours music listener You know music to me like I've done right I can envision a place or I've probably seen something your brain pieces all together Yeah, triggering those Triggering those things so when you play a string instrument like it's the wind blowing through the Through the bands there's something Yeah, this or through the like the wind in the willows or something Yeah, that kind of thing or or

13:18Making something sound like when the water looks like mercury mercury ocean or something making the song sound Like that or making it sound like it's turbulent So and he said all the stuff or this is you're saying how do you some of the sound it was a conversation? I had okay, and I know you know So then he sent me the mark on his stuff I listened to it and he was I wasn't sure he was in the vague and describing what you what he wanted to do What because more won't pony had a lot that had a lot of different styles. He did some of the boss and Elvis stuff Yeah, so it's like kind of psychedelic stuff And they did some zany stuff and they does the West's big eddy West and things

14:04But I liked all of it so you know certain songs kind of you know use I Think I got a there's a couple songs actually one of the ones for the most more Tony didn't end up making the record I'm gonna use it for something something else But it was a starting point as to like Where how we're gonna attack the stream And how do you attack the stream as well? Okay, oh, yeah, we have a pedal steel player Oh, yeah, kind of swells the strings and friend J at that and then Then some fuzz guitar will act as a horns and the two together kind of do a nice thing It's a little bit more when I came to do a live I was thinking a little bit more about it's definitely different than the record

14:50But I was kind of thinking how if songwriter It was in some very folk bands his name is Ian Matthews and he was in a band called Matthew 7 comfort or started it He was in Fairport convention when they started but his solo stuff. I was kind of imagining it Taking on that sort of life a little bit of a Yeah, just with the tools. We have at hand, you know can't take a horn and string arrangement players out all the time But I think it's really it translates really nicely feels good Oh Oh yes, subtitle record to the last record you do all by yourself

15:37Basically have a few people coming and it's not self-titled this one when you have it One back in the banks and brain is just back on stuff. Yeah, so why is it like sometimes people do it as a rebirth Sometimes people do because well nothing really picked up as a title for the record Yeah, this one best encapsulate you I guess I'm here in the moment, you know, so at the time you do it and it's just you so I think it's more just I think it's more just yeah, and It was more just I'd written so much on the you know put so much time into the record. It spent two years and like a hundred songs working it out and I wasn't Like lyrics a whole picture when I read a song I would grab me

16:25But as far as narrowing it down to one thing I could narrow it down to one thing so I think that It before I don't I would never I needed EP my first EP was self-titled EP and I wasn't thinking that was a rebirth or a Cup like a Comfortableness in my own skin and my own sound and things, but I think Ultimately it is you know sort of just me being comfortable saying like hey, this is this is what it is And this so I am and you know, this is just this is one. It's another stepping stone And I think it's just it is what it is and I thought no better way than to self-titled it. There it is

17:16It's me Talk about EP and building blocks your name came up recently And he was like open moon to talk about you in that process and that and make those records But every story here Just like oh you heard my demo But for a young The first EP to go to one of the biggest dance in the world and get them to actually listen to your disc To be impossible for every friend of mine is trying to yeah, so how how do you do that? I don't know Ever I think it's a little bit of a It's just Trying and it's all I can say did you know

18:03Friends of his I The time is is a fiance was working at a clothing company That I knew that they were it's a clothing company called Ruka RBCA and they're Southern California based company and they have a lot of different artists Musicians throughout the years and then they a lot of different Street artists graffiti artists and then fine artists and Skateboarders surfers and that kind of stuff. I know a lot of people who did that So just befriended a friend they get they'd liked my music so they'd listen to in the office And I thought that there would be like yeah, they're gone, you know The guys up to Around this cool as people are cool. That's not fine

18:49Shoot the shit for half an hour and they gave me some clothes I was like this cool. I like my music and I want to give me clothes that I wear around And so we hit it off and actually I was Yeah, then Tom was in there one day I was just hanging out talking about music was one of the designers I was talking about bands and stuff that I loved and then Tom was in there talking to the owner Pat and it said You know Matt Liz music you should check out music. It's cool. You know, I think you you like me They should do something together because I was trying to bring people together and Pat was

19:35And he's really good at it. So anyways, yeah He's like oh Tom asked me at the time. I didn't know if it was a no-doubt And he's probably the Out of all the people in the band his face in the background He's not he's the least watching And so I didn't think anything other than I said oh this guy You know, he asked me how I do my music because every court on this book track and do stupid stuff I gave him to him and he liked it. So he called me up. He said yeah, listen to that. He said you got more songs You know we could be into recording it and like you're being recording more with me in the house Yeah, that sounds great and you knew who he was at that point

20:22I did because when he left so that they had a huge for a young musician Yeah Actually would have was I told my parents I was like everything I've known now and I went there was the weekend before a Super Bowl Sunday I was like Friday and then that Sunday. I want the Super Bowl. They were playing on the Super Bowl And he was wearing a shirt that he got that day Yeah, it's like obviously we have a big warehouse. Yeah, he was wearing a shirt And he got that shirt. That's the real sure nice to my family and so From that point on then we just passed in touch and we worked on it for like two years And I think he I know he really liked working on it with me because it was such a different thing than what his

21:07His band was you know when I was coming in and being like I want this song is sounding like the every brother. See there I could never have my song sound like that my band is telling deadly brothers But so then he also had you know, I was years in experience in the studio. He knew so much that I didn't know He's like well, that's good and organ Little things that you know background stuff I never really paid attention to because I was you know at the time I was just focusing on the guitar Melody I knew what I liked you know, but I didn't know I didn't see a lot of life then So I didn't even know how to capture that I just kind of listen to records and then we'll just do my thing, you know, and so I was

21:56I mean I knew I played in school If I played music and play all of you know playing school bands and did that but I played in the band, you know band in high school and stuff we played like I Think I heard a bloodlet song or something some crazy hard And then but that was when I was like 13 and so We covered like DFL That was on the grand royal here called dead fucking last I don't know it was more of my friends like had tapes, you know, they'd be like School and then like you know, I'd learn it and we go play it and read it Okay, cool And then that was really short pretty shortly lived because then I started learning

22:44You know, I wanted a once your volume plug came out. I really was really into just learning all that stuff, right? I learned a lot of those and then Yeah, then I just started then I wondered what all that old stuff was you know that stuff from the 60s too It was more just like a quick thing like it was more like learning the other stuff on the guitar playing with my friends I didn't really think anything about anything else Yeah Yeah

23:32So I didn't really even into them. I didn't like going out and giving my stuff out I like just giving it to my friends had it and they would kind of show people yeah I didn't even like playing live at first, you know, I would just sit around and I'd sit around with my friends and we'd all sing Like I You know, just whatever just in a room. We'd all sing a man more since I would sing Son Donovan songs and stuff but then during that time That's what I I was doing that was day of all night was playing these songs and then I ended up writing

24:19That first record was sort of based on that time with those guys. That's that name song was saying after It's just sitting with all those books and just playing those songs and at the end of the day we just get together and sing those songs It was kind of like sort of imagining if we were like we were I imagined my friends But we were kind of the kinks or something and I tried to combine the two and it didn't sound like that at all But that's what's going through my brain I'm performing right there. Do you love it now? Now I'll let you do it every day. Well, I like it now because well, I've had a lot of time to you know to do it and Yeah, I guess when the questions when did you realize? Well, I do like doing this. This is fun. Well when people started saying like, you know once I had that those

25:06Home demos that I'd give up to people people would want hearing and I'd be like because I work so hard at night I'd spend like seven eight hours I come home and I'd be eight at night and stay in the bedroom until you know Before in the morning recording these things to perfect them, you know, and I didn't even know I'd work out like Oh, here's a verse and then I play it course and then I've kind of pieced it together and eventually I could play it and made it sound cohesive and good But playing it live one time through for some person I felt I just felt like I couldn't do it as good as it was Which looking back on those recordings are not they're not like really great, you know I they probably could have done a piece of justice good But that's the thing is that every time it's gonna be a little different and I think at the beginning I was scared of that and now You know

25:54It's obviously gonna be the but at the same time. I think that my the ratio of like being more Every time being a better player helps you helps it Keep your confidence up me. Yeah, that's one thing I thought you know these years it really just wanted to Keep playing a lot so I can Yeah, you know I want it's been old man and sit and play all the songs that I love my songs other songs and just really Have a story to tell about it when I'm old

26:45So that was kind of my and be good at it, you know, and then but be good at like conveying a Feeling And so and I realized in the beginning I was looking for perfection in performance and That was cool, but it's more It doesn't matter if it's perfect if you get that feeling across and so I think now I'm working on Just perfecting getting a feeling across You got to check your five so five quick questions one word answers. Let me do this with everybody Road or studio Being

27:435050 George when you hear some usually it's your first lyrics melody or rhythm song you've written your most perfect Yeah, yeah Put it's a slow song Okay, and slow songs are good to close records. Yeah, okay in one word Matt Costa Period