Matt Costa at Bowery Ballroom. 3/03/08
“They accused me of stealing $10. I told them that if I wanted $10… Well… (laugh)… I’d steal it…”
- Matt Costa
Regardless of race, religion, creed or whatever, there are 2 things that everyone working in the music industry has in common: the love of music / discovering “new” music AND the love of the unexpected and the adrenalin that accompanies it. Whether it’s the intern who’s fortunate enough to go to an Alicia Keys performance, the new-hire who randomly gets to meet Pete Wentz or the regular, cubicle-working coordinator who gets invited to go to shows, it’s all the same – we’re all motivated by the same things.
Read why I don’t ever sleep after the jump.
When I woke up yesterday morning, I thought that, after a long February, I’d at least have one day to get home at a decent hour and relax after work. That’s not quite how it went down; at about 6:30p I found out that I’d be going to Matt Costa’s show at the Bowery Ballroom. A little unplanned – but, who doesn’t love the unexpected concert now and then? Doors were at 8p - being accustomed to Hip Hop shows, not Rock ones, I arrived at an “early” 9:45pm – just before Matt Costa was scheduled to hit the stage.
Coming up from the basement to the main room of the Bowery Ballroom, I was quite surprised to see just how packed the floor was; tonight was my 1st night experiencing Matt Costa’s music at such a depth. I made my way through packed floor to the balcony – when I looked down I was blown away by just how big and tightly packed the crowd was. They gazed on, almost hypnotized, chanting the lyrics of the (apparently) massively-loved Matt Costa tracks, “Yellow Taxi” and “Unfamiliar Faces” (to name only a few). The room screamed in unison as Costa’s guitar went off on tangents between songs, slowly easing its way into the familiar sounds of Costa’s-cult-like-following’s favorite records. It almost reminded me of an “organized” jazz show, where one musician just lets the instrument talk and the others slowly join in the conversation. Interestingly, the bass pounded with a rhythm similar to a Rap show, I coulda swore I saw ?uest up on stage hitting the bass for Matt’s drummer. And, of course, customary to any show (or just about any event), the audience was flooded by the green-blue glow of camera phones and digital cameras. The show was an experience that I appreciated. It was something new… new music.
There’s a certain feeling that ties all music lovers (not the regulars, the people who really need it as a form of “oxygen”) together. It’s the feeling that created collaborations like Run DMC, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry performing “Walk This Way” and the feeling that pushed Elton John to perform alongside Eminem. Musicians are artists, always looking to push the envelope, create something unique and new, display their creation and evoke a reaction from the audience. Regardless of your race, religion, creed, which genre you prefer, or really anything else, almost all can agree that good music is good music – don’t be surprised to find your rocker cousin listening to “Umbrella” or your Sean John-wearing brother sneaking some old school Rage Against The Machine.
Aside of the fact that I walked into the Bowery wearing a “Def Jam Streetz” hoodie and Phat Farm jeans, I had 2 things in common with the sincerest music fans in the building: We love good music AND We love the unexpected… Even better when it’s Unexpected, Good music. Nights like last are the ones that keep me working in the industry. If I had my choice, at 8pm, I would have left the office to go home, not to go to a Matt Costa show – or any show. But good music is good music and, plain and simple. I left the Bowery Ballroom a fan of Matt Costa: universally appealing, capturing bass lines mixed with intriguing, “The Man Who Sold The World”-esque guitar riffs and lyrical content that had some substance – an equation that any true music fan can appreciate.
For More Info on Matt Costa: Check out his official artist page at UniversalRepublic.com
