A Production Artist + An Account Manager + A Designer + An Illustrator + A Public Relations Ninja = Matt Nasi Band

I’ve had the pleasure of being introduced to many incredibly talented musicians in my life. One of these is the lovely Erin O’Donnell.

Here’s her and her band’s musical journey:

What started as a solo effort by singer-songwriter, Matt Nasi, quickly grew into the Matt Nasi Band when he met an account manager, a designer, an illustrator, and a public relation ninja. My friend, Erin, is the public relation ninja! (pictured here on the far right)

Their freshman full-length album is entitled Anticipation and it runs the gamut of styles from soul to synth anthems inspired by the limitless influences of the band’s members.

Luckily, all of the members of the Matt Nasi Band had some free time this week to answer a few questions from me about their music and what brought them to where they are today.

Thanks so much for letting me interview you and learn a little more about Matt Nasi Band! Now, come to LA soon so I hear you guys perform!

The ladies of the group with Matt Nasi!

First things first, how did you guys come up with your band name?

Matt started as a solo act and played around so many places in Denver, that when the full band came to fruition, it made sense to keep his name part of it. Not to mention that there is pretty minimal risk of running into another band with that name.

So, you are based in Denver, where do all the other band members live? Has the city and/or state influenced the band’s music at all?

Half of the members are Colorado natives, the other half are transplants, but we all currently live in the Denver metro area. Matt is one of the natives, so as the songwriter, he draws heavily from his surroundings. Denver itself is such a melting pot of creativity and beauty, that it’s hard to not incorporate that in your music.

How did you all meet each other? Does everyone get along really well?

We actually all get along amazingly well! Matt is the main connector, as we all had ties to him before the band formed. Erin and Matt went to college together, and Jeff, Caitlin and Kerry all met Matt through his career as a Production Artist for various advertising agencies.

Take me on the career of musical journey so far? What has got you to this point?

Blood, sweat and tears. We’ve all had personal growing pains and struggles, which has individually and collectively contributed to our style of music and lyrics. But also, each member brings a different style to the group, which has really transformed our music from Matt’s solo days until now.

Who does the songwriting? Do you take turns? Do you take part in it at all? And how often are you creating new music?

Matt is the main songwriter. But we each bring our own styles and preferences to his vision, and we think that’s what makes our music so great. We are creating new music all the time. We are constantly workshopping new material at rehearsal but we’re pretty rigid when it comes to including new material in our live show.

I saw that you have a busy summer tour scheduled. Are you guys all excited? How often do you get to play in other states? Describe what it’s like being on tour.

We are definitely excited for our shows this summer! When the weather’s great in Colorado, people are out and about at races, festivals, block parties and music venues. Summer is a great opportunity for us to introduce people to our music. We don’t get to travel to other states too often, but Matt occasionally will play solo shows when he’s traveling.

Who are some of your and the band’s biggest musical influences?

Probably the most prominent musical influences for the band are Hall and Oats, Stevie Wonder, Pete Yorn, Marvin Gaye and Coldplay.

How have social networks and sites such as Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Twitter affected the way you promote your music and interact with your fans?

Social media is probably the number one way we interact with our fans! We’d probably still be playing garage shows for our neighbors if it weren’t for social media. Our initial contacts with many venues in town were thanks to MySpace.

If you had the opportunity to work with any act/artist from the past, present or future, who would it be?

That’s tough to choose. Jeff Buckley would have been amazing to sit down with considering his wealth of unique talent that was never fully realized. As far as present and future, we’re lucky to live in a city where there are so many amazing acts that no matter who we play shows with, we are always in awe.

What music are you all listening to right now? Do they inspire your music today?

We are constantly inspired by other artists. If you were to troll our recent iTunes plays you’d find Nine Inch Nails, Amos Lee, Bombay Bicycle Club, Foo Fighters, LCD Soundsystem, Coldplay, Tiger Army, Rush, the Doors, and the Secret Sisters.

What is your favorite song to perform live? And so far, where has been your favorite place to perform? Do you have any great road stories you’d like to share?

We all have favorite songs:
Matt – Keystroke
Jeff – Measure
Kerry – Striker
Caitlin – Keystroke
Erin – All of the above!
As far as places to play, it’s really tough to choose a room out of so many here in Colorado considering how many amazing soundguys we’ve worked with.

One funny story was how we happened upon the sub-culture of the Bronies (fans of My Little Pony). We played a show with a great Canadian act named Hey Ocean who were stopping through Denver on their tour of the states. Little did we know that the lead singer was the voice of a few characters on the revamped My Little Pony animated series that had a huge cult following in Colorado. We showed up to the gig to meet the most diverse, brightly dressed and enthusiastic crowd we’d ever seen. By and large they were there to see and meet Hey Ocean. The other opening act couldn’t make the show, so we were the only thing standing between Hey Ocean and a sea of Bronies. We started to play and they turned into the best crowd ever and we were pleasantly surprised that they loved our music.

Do you have any advice for upcoming musicians?

Invest in a tuner.

Is there anything else that you want potential new fans to know about you and the band?

We are all movie geeks so the more people that yell random quotes to us on stage, the better… Anybody want a peanut?

For more on the Matt Nasi Band, check out their website: http://www.mattnasiband.com/ or their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mattnasiband