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Tuesday 24 September 2013

Matchstickmen - Acoustic Grooves to Soothe The Soul.

Matchstickmen - Acoustic Grooves to Soothe The Soul.
Picture source: https://www.facebook.com/Matchstickmen.band

Artist: Matchstickmen
Album:  Acoustic Grooves to Soothe The Soul.
Genre: acoustic, rock, alternative

Listen to songs from their past album Make Mountains:


Liverpool lads Matchstickmen are turning alternative rock into acoustics with a more mellowed release of music in their latest 2013 EP, ‘’Acoustic Grooves To Soothe The Soul’. 

Adapting music from their previous works, the band are incorporating their greatest-hits from 'Through Hell... And Kept Going' (the band's 2011 album release),  'A Change in Season' (2012 EP) and unreleased material from prior workings within the band. As a result, Acoustic Grooves to Soothe the Soul takes a stunning snapshot of Matchstickmen's best work, and displays it in a revised format to which fans can experience their favourite songs all over again in a more intimate and mellowed setting. 

Matchstickmen - Acoustic Grooves to Soothe The Soul.

In their original content, the band are compared to American rockers Pearl Jam, Shinedown and Alter-Bridge - all established artists in the chart-topping rock field. The band's sound takes on a mainstream rock form that is not unlike the beginning albums of these bands, retaining an 'aggressive' style that is ore comparable to classic rock, while maintaining softer stylistic elements such as catchy choruses and a pop-rock twist to appeal to both classic rock lovers and newcomers alike. 

Furthermore, Matchstickmen's release of a varied sound in Acoustic Grooves To Soothe The Soul is a strategically beneficial move for the band to appeal to a broader audience and increase the fan-base in an increasingly developmental and progressive time for the band. By utilising previous releases, Matchstickmen not only allures new fans who prefer more acoustic renditions of rock music, but also eager fans who enjoy back-tracking the new release to find out more information about Matchstickmen's previous releases. 

Most notable of the re-releases is 'Jealous Times'. Retaining the husky vocals of lead singer Lewis Wright throughout, the Acoustic Grooves version retains it's somewhat grungy and raw vibe, while maintaining an upbeat strummed rhythm throughout - providing a relaxing atmospherical notion that is in most cases, detached from the 'noise' that surrounds rock music as a genre. 

The acoustic rendition of Matchstickmen's songs also allow the listener to appreciate the clever lyrical work used by the band. 'Dark Blue' is especially poignant, delivering the lyrics in a more concise and impacting mode. The adaptability of the band's sound is impressive in this particular track- as the atmosphere changes from a dense, grungy narrative into a traveller's journey focussing more on the need to escape from a downward-spiraling 'dark-blue' life. The emphasis of Matchstickmen's lyrics seem to change dependant on the genre by which the band is displaying. 

As a result, it is a rewarding task to listen to both the band's original works in order to juxtapose the Acoustic Grooves album with previous works such as  'Through Hell... And Kept Going'  and  'A Change in Season'.  Both versions of the songs produced showcase an array of talent from each member of the band, and provide the listener with rock music that is both engaging and easy on the ear. 

Following their acoustic release, the band is looking to revert to their original rock sound for an upcoming album release in 2014. To find out more about Matchstickmen's upcoming album, or to listen to a copy of ‘’Acoustic Grooves To Soothe The Soul’ click: here

By Lily Pavlovic posted Wed 25 September, 2013, for STSBM