Matt Stockl

'Matt Stockl is a longstanding favourite here – this will be his third appearance in our Fresh Faves, with three additional BBC Mixtape appearances to boot. And as an artist who regularly turns out fine original writing to this standard, no surprises there. With its twist on Woody Guthrie’s famous This Machine Kills Fascists slogan, this tune instantly went into my “yes” pile on first hearing and clearly had the same effect on our readers.' - Fresh on the Net/ BBC 6 Music

“Incredibly elegant and creatively insightful lyrics…delivers something standout amongst the thousands of other acoustic guitar singer songwriters.” Linda Serck, BBC Introducing - BBC Introducing

'I’m willing to wager that this is the most ambient narration of necrophilia you’ll encounter all week. Ghostly wailing synths, clean finger-picking and a matter of fact attitude weirdly come together to tell of this ‘sexually transmitted haunting.’ - blornagain (blog)

'I had a rather pleasing vision of singer/songwriter Matt Stocklwandering through the bleak winter Scottish highlands, musing on life and music, until I found out that he’d moved to Windsor. Nothing against the latter town, but it did destroy the romanticised storyline that I’d dreamt up. That said it really doesn’t detract from the fascinatingly dark soundscape that he conjures up here. The line “I love to hang around the forest at night and watch you down in the waves” is particularly intriguing (albeit in a slightly predatory way), and says to me that this guy has a bit more about him than most. I also like his use of glitch electronica and found sounds, so look forward to checking out more of his music in future.' Phil Meadley, Fresh on the Net - Phil Meadley, Fresh on the Net

“Matt Stockl continues to charm his audiences with soulful and somewhat strange musical outpourings.” - This is Feast (blog)

'As our own Debs pointed out when she selected this track, it’s not entirely clear how serious Matt Stockl is being with I Exercised Myself To Death, what with its very obvious references to Bob Dylan’s Subterranean Homesick Blues and Maggie’s Farm. “I ain’t working out on Muscle Farm no more!” he protests. Matt has appeared in our Fresh Faves a number of times over the years, and we’ve learned not to take his work too lightly.

So sure, it’s hard not to see this as at least a little tongue-in-cheek, but once you start to think about what he’s saying, you can go all kinds of places with it. Taken literally, it could speak of the pressure on young people to have perfect bodies, even if that means using steroids to the detriment of their health, or perhaps even as a broader commentary on how little has changed in the 50 years since Dylan’s originals, and we’ve been running ourselves ragged for no good reason.

Whatever the case (and we don’t need to know the answer), Matt released this track in time for an Independent Venue Week gig last week, and will be supporting TV Smith at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading on March 30.' - Steve Harris, Fresh on the Net

'Sometimes, you don’t need much more than a melody and the will to play. At least, that’s what Scottish singer songwriter Matt Stockl seems to prove. Now based in Windsor, the guitarist performs folk inspired songs with the same Celtic lick and penchant for beautiful, unsettling harmony we’ve come to expect of his kinsmen. The difference here is that, despite respectable press coverage and a fan base to be envious of, Stockl remains unsigned.

That’s not stopped him from releasing his own material. His latest EP, Futuristic, was released in February through Bandcamp and includes charming opener “Mine is the Ocean”, which is available to stream below. Mixing the melodic wonder of Villagers with the rough and ready charm of The Pictish Trail; Matt Stockl effectively embodies a scene that’s bubbled beneath the surface of more commercially acceptable music since the mid-Noughties.

In fact, Stockl himself has been present and waiting since 2006. He’s spent much of his time touring, as you can imagine of a man whose sound is heavily reliant on the troubadour aesthetic. With praise from BBC Introducing and Six Music also under his belt, it seems only a matter of time before he claims his five minutes – hopefully, the UK will allow him a little longer.' - Drunken Werewolf (blog)

'While the mainstream music scene becomes increasingly bland filled with identikit "stars" that look and sound like they've been produced by a 3D printer it's heartening to see that there are still musicians like Matt out there who are not afraid to stand out from the crowd and sing about the world around them.' - The Devil's Tuna (blog)

'One gawk at Stockl’s Bandcamp page screams, “personality” and a listen to his quirky lyrics reinforce my supposition. Matt has recently started getting some Radio-play, which is not surprising given his unique, and a little off-the-wall style. Different gets noticed, and his ‘Stockl in trade’ folk with a twist style gives him an edge over vanilla pop and everyday mainstream bills of fare.

If you’re looking for a change of scene, and a style of music that’s just a bit off-centre to draw you in, whilst perky enough to keep you interested, then the music of Matt Stockl might just be for you.' - Fresh on the Net

'Matt Stockl is a gem from Scottish Highlands. If you want to be sarcastic you might think he wears a kilt and plays the bagpipes. He does neither, but he does make brilliantly stripped back traditional indie tunes – beautifully DIY and wonderfully catchy.' - Elise Cobain, BBC Introducing