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| Photo Credit: Sam Quinn |
Matthew Connor's new single "Lose This Number," (released on Aug. 26, along with a music video) is a song about those we’ve cut out of our lives over the past few years. The Boston noir-pop songwriter and composer returns with the first chapter that leads to the fall album “Disappearances.”
Max: I could really relate with the theme of those we've cut out of our lives. How did this become the song's message and did something in particular inspire it?
Matthew Connor: I wrote this song (and most of the album) early in 2017, obviously a very scary and chaotic time in America. Like a lot of artists I was trying to make some sense of what was going on around me, but I didn’t necessarily want to write explicitly political songs; I was much more interested in the human stories I was watching play out, and in raising more questions than I had good answers for.
Max: Have you had to cut people out of your own life? If so, how did you do it?
Matthew Connor: I’m going to plead the fifth here, only because my songs are never strictly autobiographical (especially true on this album), and I want to leave plenty of ambiguity and room for multiple interpretations to exist. I will say that I’ve struggled, like a lot of people, with how to handle some relationships in my life. We’ve all seen first hand the dangers of bubbles and echo chambers, but how am I supposed to coexist with someone who views me as an abomination, or simply agree to disagree with someone who views their marginal tax rate or whatever as being more important than someone else’s basic human rights?
Max: Is there a singular takeaway from “Lose This Number”?
Matthew Connor: I’m not so sure there is. It ends on a bit of an ellipsis, which I find unsettling; there’s some catharsis toward the end but then it trails off.
Max: Watching the music video, I was really hit with the different visuals, particularly the people in face masks watching in the theater. What was the planning process that led to this video?
Matthew Connor: I started planning the video in February of 2020, and I ended up having to completely scrap the initial idea when COVID hit. I had originally wanted to be performing up close to an audience in an underground bar kind of space, which was obviously impossible. I got the idea of instead having my performance be projected in a movie theater, kind of a representation of the isolation and abstraction of the pandemic. We were lucky to be able to film at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, which required everyone to wear masks at all times (we filmed pre-vaccine). That suited me just fine – the video’s a bit of a time capsule now.
Max: What can people expect with the forthcoming album “Disappearances”?
Matthew Connor: I cover a lot of stylistic ground on this album — I leaned in a country direction without firmly landing there — but I’d say the general vibe is haunting. Each song is a ballad about someone who has disappeared, with some characters making appearances in multiple songs. Expect a little drama and a lot of atmosphere.
Matthew Connor: I’m going to plead the fifth here, only because my songs are never strictly autobiographical (especially true on this album), and I want to leave plenty of ambiguity and room for multiple interpretations to exist. I will say that I’ve struggled, like a lot of people, with how to handle some relationships in my life. We’ve all seen first hand the dangers of bubbles and echo chambers, but how am I supposed to coexist with someone who views me as an abomination, or simply agree to disagree with someone who views their marginal tax rate or whatever as being more important than someone else’s basic human rights?
Max: Is there a singular takeaway from “Lose This Number”?
Matthew Connor: I’m not so sure there is. It ends on a bit of an ellipsis, which I find unsettling; there’s some catharsis toward the end but then it trails off.
Max: Watching the music video, I was really hit with the different visuals, particularly the people in face masks watching in the theater. What was the planning process that led to this video?
Matthew Connor: I started planning the video in February of 2020, and I ended up having to completely scrap the initial idea when COVID hit. I had originally wanted to be performing up close to an audience in an underground bar kind of space, which was obviously impossible. I got the idea of instead having my performance be projected in a movie theater, kind of a representation of the isolation and abstraction of the pandemic. We were lucky to be able to film at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, which required everyone to wear masks at all times (we filmed pre-vaccine). That suited me just fine – the video’s a bit of a time capsule now.
Max: What can people expect with the forthcoming album “Disappearances”?
Matthew Connor: I cover a lot of stylistic ground on this album — I leaned in a country direction without firmly landing there — but I’d say the general vibe is haunting. Each song is a ballad about someone who has disappeared, with some characters making appearances in multiple songs. Expect a little drama and a lot of atmosphere.
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