On Stage 8/17 - Matt Shelton
Matthew Shelton has consistently stood out in his performances and songwriting as a musician who has absorbed and assimilated a myriad of styles to create his own unique voice. Folk music was his first musical love. As a young boy, his heroes were Simon & Garfunkel, Gordon Lightfoot, Jim Croce and others. Simultaneously, he was enamored with Prince and early hip-hop as well. These disparate musical appetites have continued for years as Shelton has worked at his own music.
Like so many others, Shelton began writing songs after a prolonged fascination with Bob Dylan. Combining this influence with his love of punk, hip hop, rock and avant-garde music, Shelton recorded hundreds of songs at home, as he finished college. The songs saw limited release, as they were mostly intended simply as an outlet for self-expression.
In 1999, Shelton discovered the mbira (aka kalimba, thumb piano) music of Zimbabwe. He began writing songs on the instrument, and performed for 3 years with his band Me or the Moon. The band was very well-received, and opened for many national acts including Antibalas, Daniel Johnston, and Animal Collective. In recent years, Shelton has applied his mbira talents with The Image Afro-beat Band, a 10-15 piece ensemble led by Baoku Moses.
Currently, Shelton is performing and recording as a solo artist. With his songwriting fully matured, he holds captive audiences with songs about love and sadness, frustration and transcendence. His songs these days are known for their combination of humor and melancholy, and an overriding hopeful and romantic nature, even when the songs seem full of despair.
His hard-driving finger-picking style has garnered praise and comparisons to Nick Drake, John Fahey, and Delta blues masters like Charley Patton and Mississippi John Hurt. His current work fits nicely into the recent popularity of newer indie-folk acts such as Devendra Banhart and Iron & Wine.
