About Me
Exploring the lands of pop,rock, and folk music, Matthew de Zoete combines rhythmic inventiveness with an astonishing gift for melody to discover a territory entirely his own.With a distinct voice and strong sense of harmonic structure, the 25 year-old from Hamilton, Ontario, has crafted a debut album of surprising breadth and depth. By turns simple and complex, Across the Sea reveals an underlying philosophy that every element of a recording exists to serve and strengthen each song. Ranging from simple guitar and brass ballads to joyful pop revelries, the songs are united by de Zoete's engaging vocals and strikingly honest lyrics exploring themes of distance and separation. While his music resists direct categorization or genealogy, shades of Harrison, Davies, and Drake appear, as does the influence of contemporaries like Elliott Smith and Ron Sexsmith. Produced by Dave King and released in February 2006 on ShipRecords, Across the Sea takes the artist and listener through sonic realms beyond the reach of most songwriters.The same is true of de Zoete's live performances, in which he mines the soul of each song and offers it up to the audience. Along with his band of recovering jazz players, he goes beyond a simple recitation of notes to construct a powerful musical conduit connecting listeners and songs. Embraced by the music and inspiring the musicians, the audience becomes part of the performance. Extensive touring throughout Canada and the US has earned Matthew a reputation for solid songwriting and shows that pull the audience deep into his music. Past peformance highlights include concerts with Great Lake Swimmers, Luke Doucet, Melissa McClelland, Peter Elkas, Serena Ryder, and Pete Best. Matthew has also played at numerous festivals including NXNE (Toronto, ON), Indie Week Toronto, In the Dead of Winter (Halifax, NS), GO! Music Festival (Waterloo, ON), Spring Arts Festival (Grand Rapids, MI), and the Hamilton Music Awards.Matthew de Zoete is now recording a follow-up to 'Across the Sea'. With a large body of new material and a road-tested band, he is poised to take his music and career to the next level.
