The Matthew Marsh Band

He walks in four hours before he goes on stage, followed by his band: an array of seemingly random friends he has picked up throughout his young twenty years. They seem to walk to the same soulful rhythm and beat that brought them together. Looking at them, you would never think they were part of the same band, let alone group of friends. They pause together at the stage. “Are you Matthew Marsh?” asks a washed-out guy wearing a “Shit happens” T-shirt. Matthew Marsh, sporting skinny jeans, gray sneakers, and black-and-white necktie replies calmly, “That’s us.”
Chris Azzopardi of Between the Lines has written of this night already, “When he celebrates his jazz-pop debut, "Time Line," during an album release party at the Magic Bag - the first time (not counting his White House gig at age 11) in a venue that won't mistake his smooth, silky voice as something that's being broadcasted - he'll be beaming. He already is. There are no nerves, he says; just rushes of adrenaline as he confidently declares: "I'm ready."
And Matthew Marsh has always been ready. He has been able to call himself a professional musician since the age of 12, working in the pits of musical shows and churches in the metro-Detroit area. He released his first album of original piano solos before he turned thirteen, and used the money raised from the project to set up his own mini-studio. He has been recording ever since. By the time he could drive, he was directing and playing the piano for inner-city gospel choirs in the heart of Detroit.
His latest album, Timeline, contains the songs of his high school growing pains. Songs about not being understood; wanting to leave home, and see the world. Songs about growing together and growing apart. Songs about hiding and songs about coming out. Azzopardi writes “Timeline paints a very me-against-the-world picture. Yet never comes across as another angry teen ranting on about how the world sucks. It's more mature than that.” The album forms the foundation of his ever developing sound. “My music will grow as I grow,” says Marsh, “my experience and environment give shape to who I am, empowering and enhancing my style.”
As his group takes the stage that night, Marsh knows that he is right where he needs to be. “As an artist, I want to feel the things most people don’t understand about themselves, so I might bring them to a higher awareness of their own identities.” And this is exactly why Matthew Marsh surrounds himself with such a diverse group of people and musicians. While their journey might be completely different than his, they still find hope in their own path. One fan on iTunes sums it up perfectly: “For his young age, Matthew Marsh has an unbelievable grasp on the beauty of things, and the joy in the journey. You’d be a fool to pass him by.”