Artist description An icon of the Boston scene, rocker and poet Jennifer Matthews enthralls with intimacy, nuance and vocal finesse. She is an avant-garde balladeer with a Lower East Side sensibility. She can rock like a folk punk PJ Harvey and downshift with the oblique nimble sensuality of Suzanne Vega. Her songs are missions from the frontlines of life, bell clear with unrelenting personal honesty. Matthews' bewitching charm and passionate songwriting beg her a category all her own - Eclectic Rock. In a recent review, Boston Globe Music Writer Steve Morse described her as "at times as individual as PJ Harvey and Kate Bush, at times as hippie-sensual as Neil Young and Joan Osborne, Matthews covers a lot of ground. She's an appealing chameleon."

Music Style Eclectic Rock

Musical Influences All the greats in the world of rock, folk and blues

Similar Artists PJ Harvey, Suzanne Vega, Joan Osborne

Artist History Matthews studied vocal performance at the University of Colorado in Boulder and at Denver's School of Music. While in Colorado, she established herself as a solo artist, performing in local bars and coffeehouses. During this period she developed her unique vocal style and her songs gained recognition, leading to several awards from the Rocky Mountain Music Association. After a three-month tour in Japan, Korea and Hawaii, Matthews relocated to New York where she formed the five-piece band Beautiful Mud. After a highly acclaimed debut release and performing for several years in New York City clubs, the band separated.

Group Members Her new energetic trio features drummer Bill Ricciardelli and fretless bass player Jordan Scannella, both graduates from the Berklee College of Music in Boston. This dynamic trio has cultivated a sophisticated blend of rock, funk and folk sound while still retaining the distinctive Jennifer Matthews style.

Instruments Acoustic & electric guitars, drums, bass, mandolin

Albums Best of 96-01

Press Reviews "Jennifer... rocked out to a packed house of local music lovers... She is an artist of great versatility with the ability to play any of her songs with great emotion. She played a two-hour set that the crowd did not seem to want to let her finish. Whether you hear her live or on the CD she never lacks that musical beauty. Jennifer has been spotlighted to let our loyal readers know that her talent as an artist is not to be ignored... for someone who we can't believe has not yet gone platinum..." -- Michael Friedman, Skope Magazine, Boston

Location Somerville, MA - USA

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