Next Sieben gigs

Just had lovely gigs in Croydon and London. Two quite different nights, for sure. Croydon was lovely and rowdy, one where you fight for attention. London was hushed and reverent. I’m up for both, but the second of these is far more rewarding in terms of being able to play soft, hang on a note, and play the dynamics of the room. However, having ‘Crumbs’ up my sleeve certainly helps with the former: The more up-front, up-tempo and beats-based nature of the material lends itself to being ‘banged out’ to an enthusiastic crowd that aren’t either still, or afraid to let themselves be heard. Either way, its people who come and support live music, and they are the lifeblood of any scene, for any artist. More often these days artists are surviving from the merch they drag along with them. Having an audience is what drives us, and what we survive from, as independent artists.

Next up, I have two concerts at opposite sides of Germany, Freiburg and Zwickau, both in November. And both sure to be brilliant nights. After 1,600 or so concerts I’m as enthusiastic as I ever was, about playing live. But without the nerves 😉 Find details of both these shows in my concerts page.

My last gig of 2018 is a secret little affair, that is just word of mouth, and for those of you on my mailing list. I’ll play two sets, a set of my older material, and a set of Crumbs, in the beautiful Dorothy Pax bar, down at Victoria Quays, the canalside basin in the centre of Sheffield. Sat 22nd Dec. Limited to 50 tickets only. £10. Tickets from my shop. I’ll be handing out seasonal gifts, snacks and some music for all of you. Will be an intimate and lovely night, and a perfect way for me to finish my musical year.

Again, thanks to all of you who come along to the live shows, and hope to see you all again. Keep music live, go see local bands, find some new music. Find venues and promoters where you like what they’re doing, go along, share their posts, spread their word. There’s nothing wrong with open mic nights or covers bands, but that might be all you’re left with if the live scene, and independent artists, promoters and venues aren’t supported 🙂

Matt Howden – Oct 2018