The Matinee's Change of Scene

With The Matinee’s fourth studio album, Change Of Scene, the Vancouver-based Americana group is about to redefine what it means to embrace change in the realm of roots rock. Jason Barnard sits down with Matt Layzell, their frontman and lead vocalist, to discuss their captivating musical journey. With Change of Scene, The Matinee invites us to join them on a 15-year adventure, reminding us that magic often happens when we open ourselves up to change and vulnerability.

Your upcoming album, Change of Scene is described as a transformative journey. Can you share more about the inspiration behind this album and the story it tells?

There’s something unique about how you look at the world around you when you’re traveling, as opposed to caught up in the day to day. You start noticing things you’ve probably passed a million times before, you hear sounds that are always present, you’ve just never really tuned in. We’ve spent so much of our career packed in a van visiting new towns and yet we never felt like we had really seen them. So we decided to just go on a random road trip together and headed south from Vancouver down through Washington and along the Oregon Coast. It’s one of the most scenic drives you can imagine, some of it very much reminiscent of the rugged English coastline around Cornwall. We didn’t really plan a thing because so much of our lives is scheduled. We brought along a communal journal and we all started writing things down… street signs, roadside attractions, names of the servers at the cafes… and they all started to take on a new meaning as we went. We wanted this record to feel like a return to our initial vision for the band when we started out. A band that was wide eyed and adventurous and looking at the world through curious eyes, seeing things for the first time.

The title track suggests a longing for a break from the monotony of daily life. Can you delve into the themes and emotions explored in this song and how they connect to the overall album?

Yeah, very much so. There’s a line on the track Train Rolls On where we say “For as long as I remember, the road’s been calling out my name. I’d be lying if I told you, spinning wheels feels the same” which is to say that we tend to get a little stir crazy sitting still in one place for too long. So, a Change of Scene felt like it conveyed that overall sentiment really well. We like records that have some diversity, that show some depth and breadth to who an artist is. I just recently heard an interview on our CBC Radio with Mick Jagger who said something to the effect of “The Rolling Stones have never just been a rock & roll band, The Stones can play any type of music if they want to, and we do… we have explored many sounds, and many influences.” I feel the same way with us, and this record, we hope, has a song for everyone on it.

After 15 years of touring, what prompted the decision to embark on a road trip through the Pacific Northwest to find inspiration for your new album? How did this journey impact your creative process?

We don’t get to take a lot of holidays, our summers are spent at festivals and of course touring throughout most of the year. So that was part of it. We also wanted to reconnect as friends. Not feeling the pressure of loading gear and worrying about getting places on time really allowed for us to be present and enjoy each other’s company. Not that we don’t, mind you, but the conversations can be a bit muted when you’ve not hit the pillow till 2am and have to be behind the wheel again at 6am to make the next show.

Can you describe some of the most memorable moments from your road trip that directly influenced the music on the album?

We managed to see a show in Portland by our old friend from Toronto, Whitney Rose. It had been a few years since we’d crossed paths so it was great catching up with her in a foreign environment and having the time to share where life has taken us all. But the real highlight was the moment when we reached the Oregon sand dunes… it was a misty day with a fair bit of wind. We climbed up the bank which is really quite high and the view of the ocean opened right up. A low fog was rolling in over top of the waves and cast a white wash over everything making it seem like a giant impressionist painting. We stared in awe at that expanse which made us feel very small and vulnerable. Sounds and views that were as fresh as a morning dew and forced us to be present. And there we were, silent, taking it all in, the wind in our hair, before one by one we started running and sliding down the slope, kicking up sand and laughing all the way to waters’ edge.

The decision to work with producer Steve Dawson represents a change in your creative process. What led to this choice, and how did Dawson’s approach impact the recording of the album?

We have always loved Steve’s work and had wanted to cut a record with him for years. So when we sent him some demos and he said he’d love to come up to Vancouver, we were pretty excited. The thing is, we’d never played these songs live, let alone as a full band. Steve wanted it to feel full of life and convinced us that we could pull it off by playing live with monitors rather than headphones. Much to our surprise, after a few spins, the songs felt like old friends and we got to work letting Steve, the microphones, and the ghosts in the studio do their thing. I guess I should mention, Armoury Studios is very much haunted, and has also been home to bands like Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, AC/DC, Elvis Costello, INXS & The Cranberries.

Change of Scene features a live off-the-floor recording style, breaking away from the pursuit of perfection. How did this approach affect the sound and feel of the album, and what challenges or rewards did it bring?

Recording this way forces you to be more forgiving. Maybe you played an extra note or sang a little out of tune… but the energy of that take was on fire… you realize that it doesn’t need to be perfect. That’s not the goal. It’s actually about making it feel real and honest and sometimes those happy accidents make for great moments. A lot of the records we grew up listening to were done this way too before technology allowed for everything to be cut and pieced together. So doing it like this not only captured how we feel when playing shows, but also made us tap into the spirit of those records we covet so much.

The album includes tracks like Bad Addiction, Road To Hell, and Shake It. Can you share some insights into the inspiration behind these songs and their significance in the album’s narrative?

When we first started talking about making a new record, we knew early on that we wanted to ensure each song felt natural and fit a vibe on the album so that it would be a good listen front to back. Maybe we are too old school with that logic these days, I mean, do most folks even listen to the full album anymore? But that was important to us. Bad Addiction came out of a late night YouTube rabbit hole chasing down the short but enigmatic life of James Dean. Get after it with no regrets while you still can, because who knows when it’s all over. Road To Hell is all about how we each have a past, we’ve all done things to survive, maybe things we aren’t proud of, but you have to keep going. And Shake It… Shake It is one of those songs that just came to us out of nowhere, the lyrics really just fell into place. Most of the time we write with a music video in mind but for this one, I pictured a Volkswagen or Audi commercial. Some middle aged dude pulls up to his lovers city flat and calls up to her as she hangs out the window. He gestures for her to come on down and with a skip and a jump she climbs in the passenger side as they whisk away into the countryside. Maybe it’s even the Lake District… Audi marketing execs, feel free to give us a shout!

In a music industry driven by trends, how do you maintain your authenticity and creative independence as a band?

This record is the first one that we own in full, having left Light Organ Records a few years ago. We’ve always had full creative control, but working with a label can add the pressure of needing to hit some type of commercial checkmarks. This time around we felt we only needed to do what felt right for us, and no one else. The industry is cyclical, trends come and go, but good songs that you can sing along to don’t age.

As a band with a 15 year history, how do you see your music evolving in the future, and what aspirations do you have for your artistic journey?

That’s a great question and I don’t know that we have a good answer to it. We’ve always made records when it felt right, when the songs came to us, unforced. We have definitely talked about doing our next record at a destination somewhere, maybe traveling down to LA or Nashville and seeing what that brings to the songs. And we dream of taking some recording gear to a cabin out in the woods and making a record on our own in complete isolation. Perhaps somewhere up in the Peak District. It’s beautiful up there. That would be a trip in itself.

In a world filled with distractions and fast-paced living, how do you hope your music resonates with your listeners, and what message do you hope they take away from the album?

There’s a quote from a film director I once met that reads “Real is beautiful”, which I have tattooed on my arm. It’s a reminder that there’s beauty in keeping it real, in telling real stories. That’s what people innately connect with because we are all more similar than we think. We hope that someone listing to our tunes can get lost in them and attach them to some great moments in their lives. Even though an ocean separates us, or we play different sports, or what you call ‘to-mar-toes we call tomatoes’ … once you sit down and chat over a pint, we are quite the same.

You’ve found success in North America and have supported various artists. With three of your members having British mothers, are there plans to expand your reach into the UK? Can you tell us about any upcoming tour plans or live performances?

We’ve always dreamed of playing the UK. Many friends of ours have, and rave about the crowds and the venues. Bands we’ve played with in Canada like The Dead South or The Sheepdogs seem to be well received over there, so we are hoping that our sound will be as well. We’ve crossed North America close to two dozen times so it’s high time we shed our sweat on some new stages. I think our parents would all feel really proud to know we finally made the trek. We all still have family over there and we’ve all travelled individually through the UK, so in a way it would be a bit of a pilgrimage. My mom is from Stoke-On-Trent, our guitarist Matt’s mother is from near Dorset, and our drummer Pete’s dad is from Belfast. We owe it to our families to come and play for them too.

Finally, what’s one thing you want us to know about The Matinee as you release of Change of Scene?

We have been at this a long time, so if you’re new to us, we invite you to take a listen to all our albums. We’ve grown up together and these songs kind of tell our story over the years. Change of Scene is just the latest instalment in our journey, and it’s one we are really proud of and excited to play live. So dig in and take us for a spin, you just might like what ya hear. That way when we jump the pond you you can sing along!