Matthew Ryan album/tour news

"An insightful artist with an intuitive ability to capture mood and emotion," says Blurt, about Matthew Ryan. 

He triumphs again by mining the plots and subplots of love, politics, sex, war, despair and hope in the context of modern life on his 13th release I Recall Standing As Though Nothing Could Fall.

The 13-song digital release is available July 26 and a special double disc set (including six outtakes and demos) will be released to independent record stores on Aug. 23 through Dear Future Collective.    

While Ryan's previous release, 2010's Dear Lover, felt like a peek into the intimacies of a relationship, I Recall Standing As Though Nothing Could Fall looks outward and plays more like a war journal set in present time.

Whether it's the provocatively imploring anthem "Hey Kid," or the grinding, barely suppressed rage of "All Hail The Kings Of Trash," or the late-night Waits meets Sinatra longing of "Song For A Friend," this is a record that covers a lot of ground as it keeps its focus on its individual characters.    

"Although my songs are generally in the first person, the experiences that I write about are shaped, inspired and influenced by the people and events around me," Matthew explains. "Instead of looking inward, this album communicates my take on what it feels like to be human right now. These songs aren't autobiographical, they're a hybrid of sorts, they were born in conversations with friends, watching the news, documentaries and reading and experiencing as much as I can."    

Images of dresses on the floor, planes floating through snow, drunken proclamations and silenced lovers all glide by while not only blurring the lines between heroes and villains, but also blurring the borders between genres.  "I Want Peace" thumps and prowls with the urban rumble of hip-hop, "Harmonium Song" sounds a hundred years old with its sorrowful Irish melody and "All of That Means Nothing Now" careens with that broken-hearted seethe that harks back to the air that punctuated much of Ryan's earlier work on May Day.   

I Recall Standing As Though Nothing Could Fall is further fleshed-out by a diverse group of contributors and friends. Among them is Olly Knights of Turin Brakes, who sings with Ryan on "I Still Believe In You."

Ryan's current tour dates are: 

July 14	DALLAS, TX	Poor David's
July 16	AUSTIN, TX	The Cactus Café
July 19	ST. LOUIS, MO	Off Broadway
July 20	NASHVILLE, TN	The Basement
July 22	COVINGTON, KY	Molly Malone's Pub
July 23	BRIDGEWATER, PA	Thursday's
July 25	CHICAGO, IL	The Hideout