Music has always played an important part in the Matt King and his family's lifestyle in Asheville, NC. Both of the singer/songwriter's parents had musical interests, in addition to holding down regular jobs. Mom Bernadette, who earned a paycheck in a real estate office, was a piano player who enjoyed gospel music. When he wasn't strumming a bluegrass tune on his guitar, dad Jerry supported the family with jobs as an auctioneer, a mason, and a barber. Together they were part of a bluegrass-gospel band and even recorded a bit. King and sibling Tanya, who grew up listening to nothing but gospel and bluegrass, often sang along with their parents to old Baptist numbers. By the age of six, music was so important to King that he was trying to craft his own songs and get them down on paper. He met Bill Monroe four years later, and the meeting made an indelible impression on his young mind. He started learning how to play the guitar, working on numbers like "Sweet Home Alabama." Music became even more important to King when his parents' marriage went bust in another three years. With his family divided, and not amicably, he learned to console himself with music. In his late teens, the future country singer became involved with a string of rock groups. None, however, would allow the guitar player to sing so much as a note, thanks to the inherent country-music quality of his voice, not to mention the twangy accent. Later, with a couple of albums under his belt, including the debut Five O'Clock Hero, that same twangy accent and country-music sound landed King on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry. He also participated in a Johnny Russell tribute at the Opry alongside Earl Scruggs, Roy Clark, Ricky Skaggs, and Vince Gill. Also part of the tribute's lineup was Mac Wiseman, a bluegrass tenor who had been a particular favorite of King's dad, bringing the singer/songwriter full circle and back to his roots.
It's taken an entire lifetime of experiences to fuel Matt King to create Rube, his forthcoming full-length release for Montage Music Group. For the Nashville-based singer/songwriter/guitarist, the record is the sum total of King's childhood passions and his obsession with the gritty, all-too-often untold tales of history's common man. Setting these tales to towering, high-volume alternative rock, King has forged a musical style impervious to simple classifications and labels, with a keen edge sure to captivate rockers both young and old. "I'm a frustrated guitar player who somehow had the ability to sing as well," King admits. "When I was a kid I wanted to be in the circus—I wanted to be a clown. I was riding a unicycle. I was a carnie from 8 years old. So [Rube] is a culmination of everything that intrigued me as a child….I have always been trying to return to that place of inspiration, and have found that it's a time when I was fascinated with Lon Chaney, magicians and circuses." Harnessing that creative inspiration, King has forged Rube into an ever-engaging collection of evocative tales and personal revelations. Although he didn't know it at the time, King's investigations into his family history several years ago set him on a course that has become the guiding influence for Rube's journey into forgotten America.
"My dad told me one of my great grandfathers was a Hatfield, from the Hatfields and McCoys," King recalls. "He told me stories generations back: my grandfather tarred and feathered a man; my great aunt taped her husband to a chair, boarded the windows shut, and burned the house down around him…. In the mountains people have their own brand of justice and their own way of life. I really wanted to explore those themes on this album. "
He explores the dark corners of a violent relationship on one of our favorite new songs, “Cursing The Ohio.” Catch the video here…
We had a chance to sit down with the always-interesting Mr. King for a few interview questions and this is what he had to say…
That Nashville Sound- What brought you to music in the first place?
Matt King- My Dad's Jeep Willys and Bluegrass music.
TNS- Describe your music- what's the mission behind the music?
MK- Well, I suppose it's a salute to misfits and margins of society, I'm a fan of underdogs. I won't say that my music has a mission, only because this is what I do, a mission has a beginning and an end.
TNS- What might people be surprised to find out about you?
MK- I build things to record with out of junk and I'm a reader....as in bookish.
TNS- What kind of music are you listening to? What's in your iPod?
MK- Today I'm listening to The Move and Danny Barnes. I gave my ipod away and started buying vinyl again!
TNS- If you had a crystal ball and looked forward ten years, what do you see for yourself?
MK Hopefully gratitude, health, serenity and a dash of mischief.
TNS- Okay, a few quickfire questions… Opry or Opera?
MK- Both are equally gratifying
TNS- Record stores or downloads?
MK- Record stores that sell vinyl with a free download inside the packaging.
TNS- Fine dining or southern cooking?
MK- Is this a double entendre or an oxymoron?
TNS- Baseball or fishing?
MK- Dumpster diving
TNS- West Coast or East Coast?
MK- The Northern parts of each are my favorite places in this country.
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