4 months ago 02nd Jul 16:31
Matt Costa returns to the UK this summer in support of his ‘Unfamiliar Faces’ album which included the BBC Radio 2 playlisted single ‘Mr Pitiful’.
From spunky piano-driven opener "Mr. Pitiful" and the country-tinged acoustic "Never Looking Back" to the textured "Bound" and jangly power-pop of "Emergency Call," Unfamiliar Faces finds Costa wrapping his appealing melodies in increasingly ambitious packages that recall the Shins, Spoon and Ben Folds. Though Costa's sound has a sunny, bouncy vibe, he's not afraid to get introspective: "Trying to Lose My Mind" is based on a dark period during his recovery from surgery when he faced crippling panic attacks that he only later found out were brought on by pain-killer withdrawal after a friend mentioned his parents had undergone the exact same experience. He says the title track summarizes how he felt while writing the album. "I'm always feeling like I'm suspicious of what people are really thinking. Everyone has another side that maybe you don't know: their unfamiliar face."
Costa has never had a shortage of ideas for his songs (he did, however, have a shortage of tape recorders: A girlfriend who wasn’t particularly fond of his touring had a habit of burying his four-track in the backyard when he skipped town for shows). When he tells stories, he speaks with the kind of poetic good humor he demonstrates in his songwriting — like when he relays how he and his band drove through a twister on a trip through the Midwest, but didn't really know what they'd been through until hours later. Or how an agave plant recently saved his life after a tequila-fueled fall off a balcony.
Thinking back to his time writing Unfamiliar Faces, Costa reflects on how he pulled stories out of the possessions he packed into that bedroom in Sacramento that he painted an inspiring green. "Every day I'd look at the same things and find different memories and attach different moments. You can come into a room and every day feel different about it, I feel the same way about songs, each time you listen to them you can find something new," he muses.
Thurs 3 July – Monto Water Rats, London
Fri 4 July – The Happening Festival, Godrevy Beach, St Ives, Cornwall
Sun 6 July - Wakestock Festival, Abersock
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