mark mathis

Mark Mathis - We Both Was Young (Independently released CD, Pop)
Instantly likable soft pop from South Carolina's Mark Mathis. We Both Was Young is a strangely inviting album with songs that sound something like a more accessible take on Canada's Hayden except more folky with subtle hints of bluegrass thrown into the mix. This album is impressive...even more so when you consider the fact that Mathis is currently an unknown, up-and-coming artist. This man's vocals are exceptional. He has a really cool deep voice and comes across sounding genuine and sincere. Fortunately, this disc includes a lyric sheet that allows the listener to easily absorb Mark's deeply personal ideas. The more we spin this album...the more obvious the subtleties become. Eleven cool tracks here including "Sharecropper Takes a Colored Wife," "Prenup," and "Marriage is Hard." (Rating: 5+) - babysue.com

Coming out of South Carolina, it’s no surprise that Mathis sings about good ol’ Southern values. The record is full of love, faith, and hard times. It makes you want to laugh, cry, and hug your mom. All the veteran instruments of the Deep South back up this folk singer: banjos, Jew’s harps, and pedal steels, to name a few. The band matches Mathis’ deep and hardworking Johnny Cash-esque vocals perfectly. Thankfully, Mathis lacks the overproduced, twangy sound most country music is known for. We Both Was Young keeps it O.G. with traditional songwriting and performance. This album is more about getting a feeling out than it is about getting recognition. A true-blue acoustic track is refreshing after all the digitalized nonsense that has been going around. Mathis is a rare breed of musician, honest. You can hear it in his voice and through his guitar. –Lyuba Basin - slug mag - Oct 2008

Let us now praise twang, as Mark Mathis’ third solo record does a nice job of tapping into the same rustic authenticity found in the Walker Evans-like
snapshots adorning its cover. The Rock Hill-based member of Public Radio has written a “historical-fiction” song cycle about an old fashioned love
affair where suitors still ask fathers for their daughters’ hands, cicadas buzz in the ancient
groves, and tragedy and happiness walk arm in arm down red clay roads. The music evokes a host of late ’90s/early ’00s country-indie artists, from ramshackle early Palace (“Sharecropper Takes a Colored Wife”) and A.M.-era Wilco (“Oh King”) to solo storytellers like Damien Jurado and Pedro the Lion. Mathis’ warm voice offers succor whether he’s picking an acoustic accompanied by Elijah Mosley’s judicious atmospheric “noises” or in a full-band
swinging shuffle (“Prenup”). The record could do with more contrast, and the jazz-inflected “We Will Fall In Love” falls terribly flat, but overall Mathis has crafted an enjoyable slice of Americana.

JG Mellor - shuffle mag

Mark Mathis is a new-folk and Americana singer from North Carolina who crafts thoughtful musical commentaries on life, love and politics. His new solo CD, We Both Was Young, mixes simple but affecting poetry with inspired melodies and warm, acoustic production. Mathis released the album earlier this year on his own Freshwater Records label.

Mark Mathis is also the frontman for the band Public Radio. The group has drawn comparisons to Wilco and Hem , for its down-home blend of "blue collar rock." Mathis says the featured track from his new solo album, "Oh King," wasn't originally written about the current political climate. But, he says, it seems appropriate. - npr