Even if you haven’t heard of Scott Matthews, odds are you’ve heard his biggest single. Back in 2006 it was impossible to get away from “Elusive”; a sleeper hit that became a radio fixture over the summer and saw Matthews beat The Arctic Monkeys to an Ivor Novello. Not that you’d want to avoid “Elusive”, a near perfect musical microcosm, shaped by an irresistible melody and hushed Jeff Buckley vocal. But there’s more to Matthews than one (extremely lovely) song. For the past few years Matthews has been quietly carving out a niche as a talented purveyor of superior singer/songwriter acoustica (with occasional forays into heavier waters), building up a cult following and renowned for his tender delivery and emotional intensity. I caught up with the unassuming and extremely modest Wolverhamptonian to discuss his latest album, What The Night Delivers.
How has your sound on What The Night Delivers developed from your last album Elsewhere?
It’s pretty much a mix of the first two records really. We’re going back to the development of the first album, where there was a lot of experimentation. And Elsewhere was we’ve kind of lyrically stepped up, we’re a little bit more focused on the word of the songs. I think other than that we just pretty much combined almost all of those elements from the first few albums.
Describe the song writing process.
A good 80% of the time it tends to be the music that really gets things going first. I could be sitting in a car or on the train and you get an idea that really gets things going lyrically, or you’ll be watching TV or something and something will pop into your head in some kind of obscure way into your subconscious, and it will just come out and you’ll work with a piece of music on one idea, then you’ll have this couplet idea where it will just seem to… You just start mixing and matching things, gradually developing portions of sketches and you’ll just fit it all together at some point. The music is always on guitar as well, so that’s always the first port of call. The guitar seems to come up with an idea and it paints a pretty vivid picture the guitar part. It’s easier to put words to the music that way.
You’ve been compared to people like Jeff Buckley and Joni Mitchell. Are these comparisons exciting or intimidating?
Generally the latter! [Matthews is lost for words] I… It’s a difficult one, I mean to be mentioned in the same breath as people like that is well, it’s an honour, but they’re in a different league completely. I don’t feel it’s justified. I like to think that I have my own thing going on. I mean especially now when I have the three records out I think people can get a real grasp of where in an artistic sense I’m coming from… An understanding of the kind of artist I am. I like to think there’s a… [stutters and pauses] …There’s a whole host of influences in their now. I mean it’s very flattering to be mentioned in the same breath as those people but you know, I’m just an east coast man! They’re just on a different plain completely you know! It’s flattering but I feel a bit uncomfortable being mentioned in the same breath because the pressure kicks in there as well. I think that everyone’s completely unique to themselves and they have to realise your weaknesses and all that. Sure. And you know, channel into something that you know that you’re good at instead of being something you’re not.
You won an Ivor Novello for “Elusive”. Are you sick to death of that song now?
No, I’ve been asked that question a lot! I’m still very proud of everything that I’ve put down, everything that I’ve recorded. It’s a song that’s had a massive impact on a lot of people’s lives and I think that’s an important aspect of it all. I’m very proud of everything I wrote. It’s a very popular song and I guess why wouldn’t you want people to request one of their favourite songs at a gig… It’s five or six years now since I wrote that song and it’s testament to that song that it’s still something that’s requested heavily and people are still discovering it for the first time. It sort of spurs you on, to write a song that’s better than that one. I think I’ve written better songs since “Elusive” but I guess exposure wise that had the impact initially.
What’s it like supporting big acts like Foo Fighters and Rufus Wainwright?
I guess looking back, but it was all quite hectic and it was all going so fast I didn’t really have time to think about what was going on. In hindsight I think bloody hell, I did all of those gigs and it’s quite a feat you know. You get to a point now where you kind of appreciate all the things you did back then whereas at the time it was all a hundred miles an hour. To be with Rufus Wainwright and Dave Grohl and all the others… I’m so proud just to have been on the same stage as all of those guys.
Is it good that things slowed down on the last album? A chance to reassess?
Possibly, yeah. Because I was maybe a bit too anxious on my second album to make it different. I was maybe thinking about stuff too much. But yeah, you know I think there’s been a quite continuous flow of creativity as soon as Elsewhere was finished I was kind of out there again and just trying to channel everything into this new direction which had taken a lot of time. I suppose in hindsight there was a bit more of a breathing space… Taking stock at this point, taking time to think does this song work? Does this song have that timeless quality to it?
How different is it composing on the piano? Does that affect the way you think?
Most definitely yes. For instance, if I come up with a chord pattern for a verse section I will find obviously on the guitar, I’ll have a general idea of where I need to go. But with the piano I sometimes start something and then just look for happy accidents. You’ll get this magical chord pattern and think “how did I do that?” And you’d never be able to do that on a guitar. And then you get this bridge chord and you’ll kind of work out where you need to go and then it will kind of write itself, the way it forms is quite bizarre cause you didn’t expect it at all.
What are your plans over the next year?
It’s not really planned actually you know. Obviously making this record was a great thing to happen but I don’t really look too far ahead to be honest. It’s all about still being creative and I’m already putting things in place for the fourth record, which I plan to record at home as well because I still need to be a bit more experimental, and have time to experiment as well. And you need to be influenced during that time, whether it is from books, films or other bands, whatever life throws at you. I’m beginning to bridge the gap between some of the heavier stuff on Elsewhere and some of the more intimate stuff.
