Matthew Iris Interview
Q: Can you talk about your history as an artist?
A: I started writing songs from a very early age. I couldn’t play any instruments but I remember making up songs in my head, and singing them over and over. So I knew that there was a lot of music inside me. As time passed I learned how to play the trumpet and the bass guitar. But I still wasn’t fluent enough with either instrument to really be able to write with them. (Although I definitely tried.) Honestly it wasn’t until my early twenties when I taught myself how to play guitar using a Beatles music book that showed the guitar chords in it. Being a huge Beatles fan I already knew all the songs, and I slowly taught myself how to play. From there I started writing. That was back in 2010, and I’ve been steadily building a catalog of music ever since.
Q: I was reading that you moved to Chicago in 2015 to pursue music? How has that experience been?
A: I absolutely love Chicago. I fell in love with this city from the moment I got off the train at the Addison Red Line. There’s been some tough times of course, but it’s beyond refreshing to be surrounded by a giant community of artists, musicians and like-minded individuals.
Q: What was your recording process like for your self-titled EP?
A: The recording process for the EP was a long, and strenuous one. I started recording in early April of this year, and then finally finished everything five months later in September. I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to make this EP the best that it could ever be. So that meant many grueling takes of vocals over and over until I felt that I had nailed the sound that I had wanted, and heard in my head. There would be days when my voice just wasn’t there, and I would have to stop recording before I could even begin. Some days are just like that. But I didn’t let it deter me from finishing the album, I pressed on and in the end I truly love how the EP turned out.
Q: What is your creative process like?
A: My creative process is very flippant I would say. It honestly kind of just happens when it wants to. Sometimes I’ll just be tinkering around with my acoustic, and I’ll find a chord structure that I like, and it’ll just build from there. Other times I’ll be in bed about to fall asleep and a certain lyric or melody will hit me out of nowhere. And then I have to immediately get up, find my guitar and record whatever ideas I have at that moment. It’s kind of beautiful in a way. I’m truly just the medium for the songs, and I feel blessed when they decide to come around.
Q: What are some themes that are touched upon your release?
A: The EP has a very lugubrious atmosphere about it, and that’s what I was really going for. The themes deal with heartbreak, regret, loss, coming to terms with your own mortality, but also a sense of optimism and hope for the future. I was kind of in a dark place mentally when I wrote the songs for the album and I definitely think that it shows through the lyrics.
Q: Have you started playing shows or virtual shows?
A: I’ve done a few virtual shows up to this point. I’m also in the process of finding musicians to play with. I have a few so far, and I look forward to playing live shows in the coming months.
Q: What else should we know about your music?
A: My music is constantly evolving. That’s one thing I love about the creative process of writing music. It’s never based on just one thing. It revolves around what you’re listening to currently, what’s inspiring you and what’s going on in your life, whether it’s your love life, your job, or just life in general from day to day. And as I strive to become a better musician and try to learn how to play multiple instruments, that adds more tools to my music tool belt (so to speak) and allows me to tread upon places I might not have tread upon before. I’m already writing the next album and I hope to release it sometime next year.
Q: Can you talk about your history as an artist?
A: I started writing songs from a very early age. I couldn’t play any instruments but I remember making up songs in my head, and singing them over and over. So I knew that there was a lot of music inside me. As time passed I learned how to play the trumpet and the bass guitar. But I still wasn’t fluent enough with either instrument to really be able to write with them. (Although I definitely tried.) Honestly it wasn’t until my early twenties when I taught myself how to play guitar using a Beatles music book that showed the guitar chords in it. Being a huge Beatles fan I already knew all the songs, and I slowly taught myself how to play. From there I started writing. That was back in 2010, and I’ve been steadily building a catalog of music ever since.
Q: I was reading that you moved to Chicago in 2015 to pursue music? How has that experience been?
A: I absolutely love Chicago. I fell in love with this city from the moment I got off the train at the Addison Red Line. There’s been some tough times of course, but it’s beyond refreshing to be surrounded by a giant community of artists, musicians and like-minded individuals.
Q: What was your recording process like for your self-titled EP?
A: The recording process for the EP was a long, and strenuous one. I started recording in early April of this year, and then finally finished everything five months later in September. I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to make this EP the best that it could ever be. So that meant many grueling takes of vocals over and over until I felt that I had nailed the sound that I had wanted, and heard in my head. There would be days when my voice just wasn’t there, and I would have to stop recording before I could even begin. Some days are just like that. But I didn’t let it deter me from finishing the album, I pressed on and in the end I truly love how the EP turned out.
Q: What is your creative process like?
A: My creative process is very flippant I would say. It honestly kind of just happens when it wants to. Sometimes I’ll just be tinkering around with my acoustic, and I’ll find a chord structure that I like, and it’ll just build from there. Other times I’ll be in bed about to fall asleep and a certain lyric or melody will hit me out of nowhere. And then I have to immediately get up, find my guitar and record whatever ideas I have at that moment. It’s kind of beautiful in a way. I’m truly just the medium for the songs, and I feel blessed when they decide to come around.
Q: What are some themes that are touched upon your release?
A: The EP has a very lugubrious atmosphere about it, and that’s what I was really going for. The themes deal with heartbreak, regret, loss, coming to terms with your own mortality, but also a sense of optimism and hope for the future. I was kind of in a dark place mentally when I wrote the songs for the album and I definitely think that it shows through the lyrics.
Q: Have you started playing shows or virtual shows?
A: I’ve done a few virtual shows up to this point. I’m also in the process of finding musicians to play with. I have a few so far, and I look forward to playing live shows in the coming months.
Q: What else should we know about your music?
A: My music is constantly evolving. That’s one thing I love about the creative process of writing music. It’s never based on just one thing. It revolves around what you’re listening to currently, what’s inspiring you and what’s going on in your life, whether it’s your love life, your job, or just life in general from day to day. And as I strive to become a better musician and try to learn how to play multiple instruments, that adds more tools to my music tool belt (so to speak) and allows me to tread upon places I might not have tread upon before. I’m already writing the next album and I hope to release it sometime next year.