mattroberts.com.au
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mattroberts.com.au
NEW VIDEO ONLINE: Click 'video' link above.
Yet more international praise for the new album 'Now You Are Gone':
‘A lot of good things have come out of Australia. Now You Are Gone spills over at the brim with hooks and groovy beats...cool, relaxed style…lyrics poignant and heartfelt…Iron & Wine with an Aussie accent.’
- SpaceCityRock.com (USA)
'There is a new independent pop star emerging from the land down under...skillful...well-crafted...poetic.'
- Highbias.com (USA)
'Intelligent lyrics about life...such heart and power...just the right combination of creative pop with serious storytelling. Now You Are Gone is just what the doctor ordered!'
- Kweevak.com (USA)
'Sweet and mellow…will pull you in pretty quick... real international feel...will snag you too.'
- Earcandymag.com (USA)
'Crisp, ranging vocals...this piano master has crafted catchy pop tracks...melodies that hook you in....certainly worth a listen. This was fun.'
- DiscoveringArtists.com (USA)
'A compelling mix of compassion and musical prowess'
- Rip It Up Magazine (Australia)
'Matt Roberts' catchy pop songs have been pleasing crowds in Australia and look to do so here in America as well.'
- Smother Magazine (USA)
'Given the recent success of fellow SNAGs James Blunt and Damien Rice, Matt Roberts should have no trouble finding a following with this effort.'
- Mediasearch.com.au (Australia)
'Now You Are Gone' is now available online and instore from the following retailers/sites:
HARD COPY: Copies of Matt Roberts CDs can be ordered from CDBaby.com (shipping from USA) or Play4me.com.au (shipping from Australia):
www.play4me.com.au/product/now_you_are_gone_650900_170304.html
iTunes (USA): Now You Are Gone is now on the American iTunes store, with Australia and other countries to follow.
Now You Are Gone is at:
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=128822041
The Ruby Record is at:
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=159810854
MP3: Full album versions can be downloaded from Mazar.com.au for a small fee which goes to the artist and the upkeep of that independent site. Free late production demos and sketches can be streamed or downloaded at mp3.com.au
www.mazar.com.au//album.php?albId=1185
Matt Roberts Bio - by Rainmaker PR, Feb 2006
Matt Roberts is a doctor. For most people, that would be more than enough to keep mind and body occupied from day to day. Not this man - in early 2004, he took a break from practicing medicine to play keyboards in Australian Recording Industry Association Award winner Hamish’s new project. But when that gig was done, Dr. Roberts wasn’t. Ever since, he has been combining his two loves: medicine and music. These days, he finds himself sneaking through clinic corridors with his mobile phone, chatting with publicists, venues, and record labels.
“For me, work is in two areas, music and medicine,” says Dr. Roberts, “both contain great reams of human narrative and connection, and there is a sense in which performance and care provision intertwine, overlap. My work in medicine does influence my music, but in a subtle, indirect way. The flow of humanity through my workplace means you’d have to be made of stone not to be moved from time to time. You head home with this heart full of...stuff, and out comes a song. Lyrically, it may have nothing to do with what you saw at work, but the energy has been transferred, made into something meaningful.
So, for the past six years, Dr. Roberts has been pleasing crowds at venues across Australia with his unique and pleasantly surprising brand of piano-pop. Along the way, he created two studio releases, The Ruby Record and the new Now You Are Gone, both released via Sound Vault Records. On each recording, he continues to showcase his insightful lyrics and graceful tunes, layered perfectly over infectious grooves. From acoustic/folk musings, via excursions into musical theatre and cabaret, to doses of flat-out pop cheer, the good doctor’s eclecticism is pinned down by a solid vocal identity and a unique lyrical voice.
A hard-working university hospital life has not curtailed his search for varied and stimulating influences, from classics like the Beatles, Billy Joel, David Bowie, and Lou Reed to modern-day acts like Radiohead, Massive Attack, and the Postal Service. Neither is his inspiration limited to the work of fellow musicians. “Music is everywhere for me,” says Dr. Roberts, “but mostly I am inspired by people and their struggles. Everybody’s lives are fascinating if you look closely enough. All the big themes are there: love, jealousy, regret, rage, loss, joy, mirth.”
The end result has been compared to everyone from Billy Joel and Rufus Wainwright to Badly Drawn Boy and Iron and Wine. “I was brought up on Paul McCartney and Billy Joel, so my songs are accessible in the same way,” says Dr. Roberts, “but for me the lyrics are the mainstay, with the music there to give the words wings.”
Whether you enjoy his songs for their engaging melodies and sophisticated rhythms, or for satisfying depth of his lyrical layers, the obvious conclusion is: Matt Roberts is good for you. “Oh yeah,” he laughs “I should be part of every healthy record collection!”
