Matt Herzog has a new album, Under the Stack, releasing at Day Block Brewing Company on July 30. You might recognize him from his earlier band, The Half Ton Club. The new album is upbeat, hearing the back story (below) behind Should’ve Let It Go, makes the song even more than I did upon first hearing. And it’s a uplifter!
Please tell us about yourself, your music and feel free to mention The Half Ton Club.
As a husband, father and data wrangler by day, I am a singer and guitarist for a 7-piece genre-spanning American Rock band that draws from Blues, Soul, Funk and R&B. I strive to feature all members in order to balance light-hearted, energetic grooves with heartfelt reflections and compelling instrumental responses. I grew up in Owatonna, MN playing sports, piano and singing in the school choir, and I was first inspired to pick up guitar while attending the University of MN after being blown away by a (Kid) Jonny Lang performance in Dinkytown. I met musicians with a shared interest in the older eras of Rock to form The Half Ton Club, and we were fortunate to play classic venues like Fine Line, Turf Club, O’Gara’s, 400 Bar and even scored recording time at Oarfin Studio and booking management after winning a 27 band competition at The Cabooze.
What makes you happiest or proudest of the latest album, Under the Stack?
The sound quality finally met the high fidelity standard that I have always aimed for. We captured the energy of our live shows with full band takes at The Terrarium (a great space for drums, bass, Hammond organ, piano, vintage guitar tones, brass and vocals), and I really enjoyed the final mixing process engineered by Kevin Bowe (Kill Room). I just remember us being super locked in on the mixing, and then we’d laugh about something or rave about an old classic rock song, and then get right back into the mix. All of that flowed naturally, and this was my first time wearing the producer hat, so a lot of time and effort went into crafting lyrics and showcasing all of the musicians in a way that still allowed the record to breathe. Whenever I’ve listened to my past recordings, there are usually a few spots that I’d do differently, but I am proud of how our sonic range expanded, yet I don’t hear wasted notes on this EP. Whether humorous or heavy, I’m satisfied with how the arrangements and lyrics support the theme of navigating bumps in the road through a mid-life lens.
3. I love the sentiment of Should Have Let It Go. The lyrics could have easily felt like a much darker song, but I love the upbeat carefree music. It makes it feel more like a lesson learned? Which came first for you – the lyrics, the music or just the notion?
The music always comes first for me, and the subject matter follows to match the general tone of the song. I am really close with my wife and daughters, but there are occasional moments where we scratch our heads on how a conversation grew tense. ‘Should’ve Let It Go’ is a vow to not keep score on trivial matters, and I wanted to keep it upbeat with a bouncy bass line played by Tim Kennedy and the bluesy piano of George Bergh. Graham Peterson created a fitting foundation on drums, and I had fun tracking a Rolling Stones-inspired cowbell layer. I think all of those parts along with Maia Sletten’s harmony help ease the tension of the lesson reminder. Ken Christianson was our keys player in The Half Ton Club, and he’s also a fantastic violinist now living in L.A. We’ve collaborated on each other’s projects over the years, and the swagger of his fiddle part bridged the serious and carefree sides of the tune quite well.
What was the inspiration for Outta This Funk? It makes me think of our Operation Metro Surge, maybe heaped upon the loneliness of COVID.
Yeah, that is the heaviest feeling track and a large part of it stems from the series of violent events in Minneapolis during and post COVID. It was the first period that my wife (Julie) and I actually felt unsafe where we lived, which was magnified by having daughters in elementary school. So many awful things were happening to innocent victims without accountability. The opening verse was actually a reflection of losing my father, who was a great man that I was fortunate to have a really strong relationship with. I got a call to rush down to Owatonna, but arrived a few minutes after he passed. The silver lining was that he attended one of our shows the week prior at Day Block Brewing where we will have the EP release party. As a hard-working farmer that became a High School Principal, I recall his pragmatic approach suggesting that I pursue a steady day job back in our college band days, but two decades later he attended many shows of my solo project, and encouraged me to always keep playing music. Those are the memories I return to when I need to get ‘outta this funk’.
Please tell us about the upcoming album release.
The release party is Thursday, July 30th at Day Block Brewing Co. located at 1105 Washington Ave S, Minneapolis from 6-930PM on the beautiful outdoor patio (indoor stage as a backup). Cain & Co. is a skilled local band of northern boys playing southern rock (630-715pm). Matt Herzog Band will take the stage a bit before 8pm until about 930pm mixing in older originals, a few covers of our influences and we’ll run the EP straight through somewhere in the set. Two singles ‘Don’t Wait For Me’ and ‘Should’ve Let It Go’ have been released to Spotify, Apple Music etc., and the full EP will drop at midnight. Monique Blakey of Dr. Mambo’s Combo adds amazingly soulful vocals for a track called ‘Holding You Back’ and Katie Christ sang backing vocals on a few others. Brady Moroney (saxophone) and Rob Kocher (trumpet) represented the horns on four tracks, so we’re excited about the variety of textures in this cohesive body of work.
Mostly Minnesota 