"So what are you working on these days?"
I get that question a lot, and always stumble a bit, because there is no single answer. Therefore, it seemed like a good thing to cover on this, my very own personal website. The list will be presented in rough order of priority, but work on all of these things is concurrent to some degree or another, depending on the week.
- Merch. I know, I know. Dangit, matthew, how do you have a musical brand for two decades and not have merch? I have no excuse. But soon, very soon, there will be shirts, stickers, and who knows what else, in addition to those compact disc thingies no one has the players for anymore. Be on the lookout.
- Rewired: A Radio Play. This is an audio drama version of my first novel, Rewired. I started production back in the fall of 2021, and I'm aiming for a fall 2023 release, lord willing and the creek don't rise. The cast is fantastic, featuring talent from the Fort Worth area and beyond. It's really shaping up to be something special, and I look forward to sharing it with you sooner than later.
- Everything: the album. For the past few years, I've been putting out singles on a semi-regular basis. But being a person of a certain age, I yearn for a collective version of these tunes. To that end, I'm working on compiling them along with a couple of brand new covers onto an album entitled Everything, the eponymous tune for which has already been released as a single. With luck, this will come out close to the holidays this year. I'm even considering vinyl. Let me know if that's a good idea.
- texas II: an album. In the recent years of turmoil both personal and global, I have been whittling away at some new tunes that are finally getting presentable. An album's worth, in fact. The feel and subject matter seem to keep calling back to my first album (celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, holy crabs), with an updated perspective I couldn't have had then. Basic tracking has begun at my home studio, in the texas tradition. While I've enjoyed working at pro studios over the past decade, this one feels personal enough to be best captured in a more intimate setting. I've got way better gear than I did for the first one, and have learned a lot from watching Grammy winners and such work on my stuff, so I'm excited to see how this one shapes up. More as I know it.
- Essays and poems: various. Sometimes music is the wrong avenue for expressing a particular feeling, so I publish poetry and essays on both Substack and Medium. I've started posting a few on here as well, as the spirit moves. I collected some of the earlier essays in my book Other Gods a few years ago, available at all online retailers. I expect I'll put out another compilation at some point, but in the meantime, enjoy them in digital form.
- Stories and novels: various. While Threnody was my last completed novel, I have continued to write periodically on a variety of stories, some of which are closer to completion than others. I don't rush my writing process, so who knows when they actually see the light of day. Rewired took me several years, while Threnody was much quicker. Hard to know how it'll all go, but I've gotten a bit more open to sharing progress than I used to be, so watch for updates here and elsewhere.
...which brings us to...
- Patreon. I'm developing a Patreon platform for the matthew show. It's something I've considered many times, but with all the world's craziness the past few years, it never felt like the right moment to attempt such a thing. I know there are people who appreciate what I do and would like better access to the process, and when it launches, this will be your best opportunity to get a peek inside the engine room, as it were. Early access to releases, demo mixes, shop-floor stuff, plus bonus material and Q&As. Aiming pretty squarely for May. Be on the lookout.
"Is that all?"
HA. No. But it's a good list of the less nebulous projects floating around the matthewverse, the ones that are closest to being visible to anyone but my addled brain. As those of you who follow my social media know, life has been full of challenges both personal and professional. What comes next, if I have anything to say about it (and I do), is committing even more fully to doing what it is I have spent my life doing, with greater proficiency the longer I work at my craft. Expect good things in the near future. I hope you'll be a part of it.
More soon, real soon, and thank you always,
matthew