MRVSS

Album:
Matthew Ryan's 10th album, Matthew Ryan vs. the Silver State (MRVSS) turns out that he still has plenty of gas left in the tank. It is a turn from his previous album (2006) that showed a more vulnerable side of him than usual. His brother sentenced to prison and the weight of the world weighing him down, Matthew's songwriting was intense expressing his pain. On a musical side, Matthew used loops and created an ambient sound as the backdrop for his lyrical poetry. Back to the current album, Matthew Ryan vs. the Silver State (MRVSS) is mostly stripped of technology, opting for the traditional guitar, drums, bass, but with a serious hint of violin accompanying the record.

Matthew perfects the art of wearing his heart on his sleeve. The song and single "Jane, I Still Feel the Same" is an ode to a girl and to a larger extent, regret. "It Could've Been Worse" takes credit for being the most haunting song on the album and possibly in his collection. The standout track to me and one of the first I heard off his website before the album was released was "American Dirt." Matthew doesn't fail to write the romantic songs that you're used to hearing with the track "I Only Want to be the Man You Want."
Matthew Ryan vs. the Silver State displays his angst, his love, his hurt, and his dreams all on his sleeve. That isn't being said lightly either. When you meet Matthew, the sincerity in his voice and the gratitude he gives you when he personally thanks you for coming to his show makes you realize everyone on the record is very real.


Concert:
Matthew Ryan at Schubas
Chicago, IL
5/13/2008



When my friend and I arrived at Schuba's we went to use the bathroom and as I was waiting, Matthew was the one who came out. I was very surprised to see him and greeted him, and I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw my friend Noe hovering in the doorway of the other bathroom, not yet going in.
Matthew did a 12 song set using a heavy influence of a muted acoustic guitar and violin, as well as the rest of the band. Hearing "Sweetie" from his 2003 album Regret Over the Wires was exciting and set the tone for the night. Matthew spoke in between songs and talked about his love of the Clash which he appropriately transitioned into covering them. On his last song "Closing In," Matthew declared a last dance and walked thru the audience with microphone in hand.



It's easy to say he missed some important songs since he has so many prolific ones, but one cannot say he didn't play any fan favorites. As Schuba's is bound by a neighborhood curfew during the week, Matthew unplugged around 10:30pm and walked into the crowd to play an acoustic set. He answered the request of a fan yelling "3rd of October" in where he got to the chorus, I was close enough and felt the right energy to sing along at the chorus. Matthew looked up and smiled and the rest of the audience who circled around him sang too. Matthew played for about 30 more minutes singing "Chrome," "Return to Me," and anything else we requested.... that he remembered how to play.