Singer-songwriter Matt Siffert released his brand new EP "Gallatin" today (July 21st) and to celebrate we asked him to tell us about the song "January 25". Here is the story:
It usually takes me a long time to write a song. I'm talking dozens and dozens of hours. I'll sit around, ponder the message, the musical ideas, making sure everything is squeaky clean. On this occasion, it probably took me less than an hour. The story is autobiographical. The day after it happened, I couldn't stop thinking about it. I had to write a song. I had no choice. I went to a favorite coffee shop in Nashville and wrote -- pretty much all of the words and melody came out right then and there. I did very little editing.
One thing I'm proud of in this song is the balance of composition and improvisation. The first half of the recording is intricately arranged. Everyone's parts are mapped out. After I'm done singing, everything is improvised (except the ending). I'd like to think that the song has both a deliberateness and spontaneity to it. A sense focus in the words and musical ideas, but a sense of liveliness in the performance. It's hard to make recorded music feel alive -- circumstance and technology often work against you in that way. I feel like we beat the system. That the rawness I felt in that coffee shop can be felt in the recording.
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!
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