Chad Matheny (AKA Emperor X) is an extremely interesting and pretty inspirational man. He is essentially a songwriter but is far from the usual bearded-man-with-a-guitar cliche. It’s difficult to pigeonhole; he has been labelled ‘noise pop’ and ‘lo-fi speed-folk’ by some, his sound ‘a swollen interfusion of capricious brilliance’ by others. He sings about anything and everything in a delirious flow of information, a flood of times and places, metaphors and allegories. He sings about broken A/C units (Compressor Repair – see video below), fanatical religious groups (Allahu Akbar), death and disaster (Defiance [for Elise Sunderhuse]). No matter the subject each song is crafted to convey a message or construe an idea, each word meaningful and necessary. Songs that reward careful and repeated listens.
Alright so his songs are well-crafted and thought out but why is he inspirational? Well he dropped a master’s degree in physics to pursue what I presume are his real interests (something which takes an admirable amount of guts) and self-releases his albums. Not only that but Matheny has shunned the modern techniques of promotion and relies on live performances and word of mouth to gather attention. Once you have found him however, you discover that his blog is an entertaining read and is far more than the usual self-promotion blurb. He recounts tales of shivs and bleeding armpits and considers the effects of architecture on human behaviour. He also buries master tapes in various locations when touring, a ‘geocoded cooperative exercise’ as he calls it, which fans can find and dig up in a global treasure hunt. Cool huh?
I’ve arrived quite late to his music and therefore haven’t really experienced it chronologically, which probably means I’ve missed some real gems somewhere in his discography (some of which dates as far back as 1998). That said, the newer releases are proving more than enough to be getting on with for the time being, with certain songs (I’m looking at you Allahu Akbar) being stuck in my head for days at a time. I look forward to delving deeper. Emperor X will be touring the US and coming to European shores for the first time this summer so get out and see him. You may also find a tape or two near you. Full tour dates are here (on the right hand side).
A new record is in the pipeline, with ‘Nap Time for Tom Coughlin’, a mix of numerous songs, available now over at The Bomber Jacket’s page.