Interview with Matt Nathanson

by Stephanie Shum

In the year or so since we first interviewed Matt Nathanson, a lot has happened. He began touring more than ever gaining an even larger fanbase, and most importantly, he was signed to a major record label. We at Dreams Awake thought we should sit down with Matt again and talk about the changes in his life after releasing his first CD with Universal.

Dreams Awake: Ok, just a couple of random questions to warm you up. I’m a reality TV buff so I have to ask. Which reality TV show would you go on given the chance?

Matt Nathanson: Oh man, I don't know, I don't watch any of them. Uh, I think I've seen a few episodes of American Idol and ... Survivor, I never watched. Maybe the Real World, MTV The Real World because they seem to always just have sex on that show.

DA: Speaking of TV, what show was the first to feature one of your songs?

MN: Dawson's Creek -- my favourite TV show of all time ... at the time. Yah, they played "Loud." I think that was the first time. It was pretty cool. I love the Creek.

DA: What was your favourite storyline on Dawson's Creek?

MN: Oh dude, I would say the whole first and second season, Joey/Dawson thing was it. That's what hooked me in. It kind of got a little bit crazy, it kind of faltered slightly and then by the end, it was absurd but the first two seasons were fucking great.

DA: Who was your favourite character on the show?

MN: Oh my God, it's funny, I don't know if I have -- Pacey probably, he's everybody's favourite. But Katie Holmes is hard to not like.

DA: Do you still get excited when you hear one of your songs played on a TV show?

MN: Yah, dude, I get excited when people ask me questions about my songs. I'm fairly ... anything that revolves around any positive validation, I'm down with.

DA: What is your favourite music publication magazine?

MN: There's 3 that I really like for different reasons. Performing Songwriter, I think is a great magazine. I think it's well written and the articles are cool. It's sort of like a book every month. Blender is actually my favourite probably. I hate Maxim, I hate Stuff. But for some reason, Blender's the shit. It's hilarious and they've got so much good information and so many interviews with people that I can't believe they've interviewed. So I'm really a fan of Blender. And then Rolling Stone is fun on the toilet when you don't want to think and you just kind of burn through it. Blender is just rad. It's like tons and tons of information which is perfect for me.

DA: Do you read your own reviews in any of those magazines? MN: Oh, Jesus Christ. If I was reviewed in Rolling Stone, I'd fucking pin it to the wall. Even if it said "I couldn't ... that I was like William Shatner's records." Even if they gave me a half a star. So, I haven't been reviewed in any of those. But Performing Songwriter, I think, is going to do a little thing on me which will be neat. But I'm sure I'll read it if they ever get around to doing it. DA: What is your favourite venue to play? And what is your dream venue? MN: Oh boy, I really like, there are a lot of really great venues. I'd love to play the Beacon Theatre in New York. When I stay in New York, I stay pretty much right next to the Beacon. So that would be cool to get to be big enough to do multiple nights at the Beacon, I could just be done with the show and walk across the street and go to my friend's house. But I guess if I was big enough to play 3 nights at the Beacon, I probably would have a hotel, so that doesn't really hold up. And my favourite venue to play is probably, I mean, I really like the Paradise in Boston. I think it's a great room because the way that you can get on stage and the way everybody is sort of around you. You know, it's a nice ... it's a really nice trip. It's a good way to play. I like that room a lot actually, that one comes to mind as a favourite. And then there's a place in San Franci -- there are a couple of places in San Francisco: Bimbo's and a place called the Great American Music Hall -- are both really great.

DA: Name someone, an up and comer, you think everyone should take a listen to.

MN: Um, well, she's not an up and comer, but I think everyone should listen to Emm Gryner. So she's not really an up and comer, she's kind of a come and stay kind of person -- she's already here. She's the queen, I think, she sort of knocks me down. She's one of my favourite people. I love Emm. So I would say that she's something -- every one of her records has moments that sort of blow my mind beyond a place where I thought I could be ... blown. There's always just great things that happen with her records.

DA: Matt Fish has been touring a lot with you recently and has appeared on several of your albums. How did your collaboration with him first come about?

MN: I arrived in San Francisco after college and I started to go to open mikes and things like that and become part of that scene and he was in a band that was in that scene. And I went to record my second record and I needed a cello player and I kind of asked around and everyone was like "Oh, Matt Fish! He's great." So he came and played on my second record and we kind of became friends from that and just started hanging out and then he would play on every record since and play live with me every once in awhile. And then it became a "Hey Matt, this is fun, let's keep doing this" and so it rolled into a much bigger thing.

DA: So before, you actually were specifically looking for a cellist?

MN: Well, I was looking for a cellist for the record but I didn't know if I ... I never thought I wanted a cellist to tour with. I always thought I wanted a band to tour with. But it was hard to find folks to do that and I just ended up playing by myself and I got bored of that. I was like, "I really needed somebody to play with." I experimented playing with a guitar player and I, and then a percussion player and I. And Fish just sort of stuck. 'Cause he and I are really good friends so it was a natural progression, that when he played with me, it sort of fit and it was nice.

DA: And how have your shows changed since he came along?

MN: They've gotten to be a lot more fun for me, for sure. It's a pleasure to play when he's on stage. It makes it a lot ... it takes the weight off and it makes it a little bit easier to sort of get a vibe, you know what I mean? Sort of feel in the moment when he's playing because he sort of carries what's happening and I can kind of be ... sort of transfixed by the way he plays, you know, and what he adds to the song. And if the monitor mixes right, I can kind of get swept away in this, the two of us playing together. So it's a much better time for me, it's much more fun.

DA: You’ve said before that the main reason that you didn’t tour with a band is because it’s expensive. Now that you’ve got a label financially backing you, do you think we’ll be seeing you with a band soon?

MN: I'll probably bring a band out in the winter and spring. The plan is to ... I'd like to start touring with a band in the new year just to be able to then do headlining shows in all the places that I like to play but with a band. So it'll be fun -- I've been to Boston so many times, I've been to New York so many times, I've been to Atlanta, you know, Chicago, Cleveland. It would be nice to hit all those places with a band just to sort of like vary it up and give folks a little something different.

DA: And on the same kind of note, will we be seeing you tour internationally anytime soon?

MN: Oh my God, I don't know. Probably not. I would love it but I don't know. Canada for sure, but Europe and things like that, I don't know. I never know that kind of thing. I guess I'm fairly focused on ... I would love to go to Europe, I would love to go to Europe and Australia and stuff , that'd be a blast. But that kind of stuff depends on the need. So if somebody offers, I'll totally go or if the record does anything in those places, I'll totally go.

DA: Are there any plans for a live DVD? MN: There are plans, actually. There's plans for a DVD-DVD of live stuff and non-live stuff but it's kind of been put on hold just because I'm never around and always in motion and kind of always ... so we had kind of a concept if we hadn't done the deal with Universal but now that we've done the deal, we're kind of focusing on this record, all focus on this. And then see where we're at at the end of the thing. If I've been dropped, we'll probably go to it and if I'm still making it happen, we'll keep on. DA: Your live shows are filled with funny stories and anecdotes which the crowd just eats up. Did you first start telling these stories as a way to overcome nervousness or --? MN: Yah, actually. I did it because if I get up there and just play my songs, I don't feel like I have a connection with what's happening. For me, it's much more enjoyable to sort of feel like I'm hanging out with a bunch of my friends and interacting with friends like I would at a party. So for me, it's not nervousness as much as just comfort. Like it's really comfortable for me to interact with everybody and have a fun time and joke and that's the way that I enjoy playing. So yah, it makes me feel more comfortable, for sure. DA: Which of your songs do you think is the best "intro to Matt Nathanson" song and why? MN: Oh boy. I don't know. Um, I don't know. Do you? I don't know. Intro to me. Um, maybe ... "I Saw" off the new record ... maybe "Pretty the World." I don't know, I really don't know. I don't know! DA: What about "Bent" ... because of Emm ... MN: Because Emm's on it. That's awesome! Emm's on the new record too.

DA: I recently read online that someone was describing your music to their friends as "emo." To set the record, how would you describe your music to those who haven't heard it yet?

MN: I guess it's just sort of aggressive singer-songwriter stuff, you know? Like, when people say, "What's your music like?" and I'll be like "Well, it's kind of singer-songwriter" and they'll be like, "Oh, like James Taylor or John Mayer?" and I'll be like "Nooo nooo. Kind of like if they were angry all the time."You know, the music itself comes from places ... like, I wish I had a band but I don't have a band so I try to channel that kind of energy, you know, try and see if I can drum up that kind of energy by myself or with Matty.

DA: How much do you credit message boards and the internet in general with your success so far?

MN: Oh my God. Almost 100%, for sure. That and bootlegs are the way to go. It's great how people spread the word, it's awesome. I haven't seen it really affect my sales, you know, at all. But that's definitely it. The way that the word spreads and the way that people get enthusiastic on the message boards and on sites and through live shows being passed around, it's pretty great. It's definitely the reason that this gets going the way it does. I don't think I'd have a career if it wasn't for that kind of word of mouth.

DA: So how do you feel about the bills that politicians are attempting to pass which are trying to put a stop to online music and file sharing?

MN: You know, it's like when, it's a really really multi-layered question. They need to find a way to regulate it, I guess but it's not really -- the music industry is such a dinosaur that for them to complain about a new way of distributing instead of sort of realizing the benefit of it, do you know what I mean? And sort of moving in that direction. The music industry works in a really archaic way and it really moves like a huge behemoth moves. It's obvious that this is the way that things are going and yet they're still fighting tooth and nail to have it not be that way. And they're complaining that their sales are down and they're complaining blah blah blah, and they complain that it's because of ... but if they were to just make records that were substantial and sell them for a price that was reasonable, then there wouldn't be fucking people stealing shit, which isn't really stealing -- "stealing" to them, quote unquote. Imagine if our records were 10 bucks, 10.99, you know? And everyone had more reasonable expectations and more reasonable budgets and sort of ran their business like an effective business should be run as opposed to a fucking joke where people don't have any concept of how to do their jobs, which is sort of most of the way that it goes, unfortunately. And so it's just one of those things like the old people groaning about the young kids, so it's just sort of stupid. Yah, so I'm not a big fan of the concept.

DA: Your cover of James’ "Laid" was the first single off of the "American Wedding" soundtrack. How does it feel to all of a sudden get wide-spread radio play?

MN: It's pretty neat actually. It's neat to go play on the radio for morning show folks and be able to meet cool DJs at certain neat little stations. That's pretty cool. I'm glad it didn't go crazy because if it had gone crazy, it would have been a little bit of a bummer to have that be my first sort of ... I've been doing this for a while and to have that song -- I was really glad that I got to do it because it's a great song and it was fun to do but I would've been bummed if it had been, in some weird parallel universe, it had become a hit, like a massive hit because then that would've been weird to have gone all this time and then have a cover be my first thing. But I'm pretty thankful that it's making in-roads in certain places and people are hearing it and getting kind of excited. And it was a nice little way to set up my record. So yah, it's pretty cool, it's fun. I've only heard it on the radio once because I always miss it. People are in San Francisco and it gets played a lot and I never, when I'm home, so the other day we were in Indianapolis and we heard it and I thought that was pretty cool. I turned on the radio and was like "Whoa, that's totally me!" and Fish was shitting himself and he was like "Hey, I'm on the radio!" So it was fun.

DA: So you were pretty excited when you heard it on the radio? MN: Yaaah! DA: What were some of the other thoughts going through your head when you heard it? MN: Just, I wonder if it sounds good to people. And I wish I hadn't put the percussion in the verse. That's it. It was one of those things where I heard it and I was like "Oh, that's cool, it actually kind of does sound like a real song." You know, that moment of like maybe ... I guess this is how real songs happen. This is a real song. Oh, that's neat. 'Cause we did it quick and I just had no idea if it was even going to stand up sonically. But it did. DA: Do you think "Laid" will become a regular on your setlists? MN: Probably not. Just because, I'll do it maybe for fun every once in awhile but it's like I also sometimes do a cover of "Sweetest Thing" by U2 and I love playing that song, but I don't do it very much because for some reason, I just don't ... upbeat covers ... lately, I'm into either goofy metal, obviously, which is a long running fun thing, or like really quiet sort of songs, you know, quiet covers, Springsteen covers or whatever. So sort of upbeat kind of poppy covers like that, I don't -- except Starfish and Coffee I guess is sort of goofy. But goofy. It's either goofy or deadly serious. But something in between, I don't do for some reason. I haven't felt the urge to bust into "Laid" or "Sweetest Thing" lately.

DA: Tell us about your experience in the studio preparing this record.

MN: It was fun, it was just a long, it was long, trying to bring it in. Because at a certain point, it became ... everybody else's opinion kind of started to weigh in on the situation and I didn't let it affect MY decision unless I felt, you know, I took what everybody had to say and I sort of like "Okay, alright. And cool, here's my decision." But it was just one of those things where it always takes a little bit longer when you involve other people and they feel an ownership and they feel like they want to give their opinion and you kind of have to respect what they have to say and sort of see it through a little bit and see if it works. Sometimes it is better and sometimes it's not. So it just took a little bit longer -- it took way longer than any of my other records have ever taken. But it was fun. In retrospect, I could've enjoyed it a little bit better, you know, a little bit more. But it was very -- February, March was spent in the studio, then I went on tour March, April, May and then I came home in June and spent it in the studio. And it was like, to have that break in the middle was a little bit, it felt like I had an itch that I hadn't scratched, like it was unfinished business. So it was nice to get back and sort of put it together and get it finished and get all the artwork together, so it was nice.

DA: How did you come up with the new album’s title, "Beneath These Fireworks?"

MN: I was looking through old lyrics of songs that I didn't make into anything and "Beneath These Fireworks" kind of became -- there's a song called "Prove to Me" that isn't on the record but I play it live sometimes. And "there's a world beneath these fireworks" is what the lyric was and it became something else, you know, in the song "Prove to Me," it became "I could lie awake for hours underneath these fireworks" ... I forget what the lyric is. So it was one of those things where I went back through all my old pages of lyrics and I was sitting there with a couple of friends and I was just kind of reading random lines and I was like, "blah, blah, that one, that one, that one" and when there was one that would catch our ear, I'd be like "Oh, let's write that down." And then the next morning, I woke up and I looked at them all and "Beneath These Fireworks" kept kind of getting cooler and a couple of them sucked. You know, the next morning, you wake up and you're like, "Oh my God, please nobody tell anybody that this lyric was a popular song title." And so "Beneath These Fireworks" just kind of became IT. It's the weirdest thing because "When Everything Meant Everything" and "Still Waiting for Spring" and "Not Colored Too Perfect" and "Ernst" and "Please," all those titles were there kind of before and for this record, the title just wasn't happening. And then that came up and all of a sudden, now it's starting to really make sense with the art and the way that it looks and everything. It was like a slow ... it was a sleeper title. I'm really psyched about it, actually. So yah, it came up just kind of through old lyrics.

DA: How does it feel to have your first major label album completed?

MN: I think it feels pretty cool. I was be psyched when I got it all artworked out and wrapped up and I could unwrap it and put it in and could experience it from the beginning to the end. I though it was cool. It's funny, I'm really excited to like ... I love writing songs and I love making things so I kind of can't wait to write more songs and it's hard because I write only in certain environments and on tour is not one of them so it takes me a really long time. But I'm always kind of amassing lyrics and chord changes and melodies and then I get home, and kind of mush them together. So I'm psyched that the record's done but I'm already kind of moving on to like the next batch of songs whether or not they end up on a major label record or they end up on my own record, you know, either way, it doesn't really matter. The creating is like, it's really fucking therapeutic, like in a really good way. It's kind of like, the best feeling I ever have is when I'm writing songs and you create something out of nothing and then you have your song and you play it for people and the newness of the song and the feelings that go along with it. It's such an impressive, it's a great way to express yourself. For me, it's like, it's a really great way to say what's inside me in a way that I can really get my point across and get it to the people that I want to get it to, what the songs are about or the people around the song. It's a really neat way to communicate actually and it sort of lasts for a long time. And so it's a pleasure to be able to do it. So I'm kind of excited to be able to get cracking on doing some more stuff and always just kind of playing it for people. So it's fun. Whether I'm off the label or not, if this thing tanks, it'll be fucking cool, we can make a record by ourselves again. But either way, it's all good, for sure.

DA: Did the completion of this album feel any different than your previous ones? MN: No. Little things got a little bit more stressful like the fucking sequence of songs. And uh, I just sort of had to check myself, and be like dude, it's just a record. You've made these before, get over yourself. Like, the making of the record didn't feel any different, the mixing ... when everybody else got involved, it kind of changed the, it changed the scope of it and then I had to kind of just reel it back in and be like, just fucking relax, we're not launching a rocket to the moon or like splitting the atom or something. That's important shit. We're just making music, a record of an event and let's just move on, you know? DA: How has the label thing been going so far? Is it everything you had hoped it would be? MN: I didn't hope it was going to be much so it's been better than that. And it's like, it's cool, it gave me the opportunity to make a record with some folks who I love, who I've never been able to make records with before. I got Matt Chamberlain to play drums and I just love him, I got Davíd Garza to play guitar and I just love him. It was just that kind of stuff and I got to mix the record with Mark Endert who I think is great. He mixed Fiona Apple's first record and he's just the shit. And so, there were moments that were just ... it was like one of these things where it's like, this is a good deal, you know? If I wasn't on the label, I wouldn't have this opportunity and so it's nice to be doing it. And the label really did give me all control, you know? And so, that's always cool. I feel bad for people who don't have that kind of control and for me, it was never an option to not have that control so I kind of took it for granted. But it was like, we made the record and finished it and I was like "Oh cool, this is the best one yet, that's rad. Alright, we're moving forward. This is still good." So, it's fun.

DA: Before you got signed with Universal, you expressed some concern over possibly losing control to a label. Now that it’s after the fact, have your concerns been alleviated any?

MN: You know, we have yet to see how the label does their job and that's, you know ... I'm in the business to sort of sell my product. That's how I see it, that's how it's got to be done. So my thing is, I just want to do it to my standards of how I feel like I should be .. how I should be represented, how I should represent myself and so we'll see if they allow me to keep doing that with integrity. They're always going to allow me to do it but there's this thing about momentum at labels and people get excited about things, like "Oh my God, what we'll do is we'll dress you up as a banana and then we'll put you out -- oh my God, that's totally it." And then the company starts to get all excited about you dressing up as a banana and then you sort of say -- they call you and say "Do you want to dress up as a banana? It's going to be great, we can sell tons of records" and you're like "I don't want to be a fucking banana." And then all of a sudden, everyone's like "Ugh, well, fuck him then." You know what I mean? So we'll sort of see how it all goes. Their ideas sometimes are not the best ideas. It's all about kind of picking your battles, picking the time to say no -- no way -- and the time to say okay, yah, that's fine, I don't feel so bad about that.

DA: How has your life changed since "Beneath These Fireworks" got released to the masses?

MN: It hasn't. Uh, the cocaine is more readily available now and it's easy to smuggle in. Yah, all sorts of drugs and paraphernalia. And I can get my blood transfusions when I've done too much of the dirty, dirty opium. It's pretty great to have it in stores and it's pretty great to be able to play a show and if people don't buy it at the merch table, they can just go down the street to Best Buy or their local record store. That's pretty cool, that's pretty much the most kickass part of the whole thing really, to be able to have records in stores where folks can get them. That was pretty much a cool rush, that Tuesday that it came out.

DA: Do you ever go to stores and just stare at your display?

MN: Nooo, and I've never re-organized everything and put mine in the front section and thrown fucking whoever it was in the back. The day that it came out in New York was pretty cool. I went down to Tower and there it was on the endcap.

DA: Was anybody there going to buy it?

MN: No, it was pretty early. I got in there right around the ... I just walked in, was like "cool," bought a bunch of other records and left. I bought a ton of other records though because I didn't want to have ... I know I bought more than I usually buy. Usually, every Tuesday, I probably buy 4 or 5 records. That day, I think I bought 8 or 9 so I could hide my record in the stack so they wouldn't take my credit card and be like "Oh, Nathanson, huh? You like yourself, buddy."

DA: And finally, do you have any advice for up and coming artists regarding getting signed to labels or just any advice in general?

MN: Just keep doing what you're doing. Don't fucking worry about labels, don't fucking worry about anything. Just keep making your music. Damn, it's easy for me to say now that I'm on a label and I'm touring. Because at the time, if someone said that to me, I would have smacked him in the face. But it's like, you just have to do your thing, you just have to just fucking create and be psyched to create and be psyched to be a part of that experience. Everything else is gravy. What's really important is getting to be the best songwriter you can be or making the best record you can make at whatever level you make. And I always thought that making records for me is like independent films. You see indie movies and they're great and you can tell they had to cut but the storylines are always great when they're done well. Like, great indie movies, the storyline is fucking ... it doesn't matter if the shadow of the boom is in the picture or whatever, it matters that you're there and you're engrossed in what's happening, in the meat of the experience. And that's what records are; songs are fucking it. And just write great songs and then if the record doesn't have the gloss or the whatever that you think the record should have, fuck it. Just make a record. And just keep moving forward and keep getting better at what you're doing. And don't let anyone tell you that it's important to sign a deal or do any of that shit. It's important to just sort of find satisfaction creating your stuff and like, it's really hard and it's really easy for me to say, but that's essential. It's just all about being psyched to be a part of creation and the creating of stuff. And that's essential and what you should stay focused on.

For more information on Matt Nathanson, visit his website at www.mattnathanson.com.