Live Rewind: Matt Nathanson at the Great American Music Hall, 11.11.05

Three days after seeing Jason Mraz, I attended what would be one of my favorite concerts to date.

I discovered singer-songwriter Matt Nathanson through a combination of the now-defunct Mytunes and Amazon.com and instantly connected with his EP When Everything Meant Everything. Although his first major label album, Behind These Fireworks seemed a bit more unnecessarily polished, Matt still proves he has the star quality and talent needed for a breakthrough. His blend of instantly catchy pop-rock hooks, emotion and cynicism, and memorable lines like "I can still smell summer on your skin / I can still remember giving in, wrapped all up in your hips and in your sheets". But Matt Nathanson on CD is nothing compared to Matt Nathanson live, in concert, plugged or unplugged.

The opening acts were Kate Earl and Matt Wertz whose performance for the song "Everthing's Right" I especially enjoyed.

If it could be possible, Matt was better live than his recordings, since he is such an unlikely enigmatic, charismatic and ridiculously candid musician. He doesn't simply perform songs. He offers anecdotes on his personality and life as he prefaces his performances. And boy does he pique people's attention by using intermittent profanity throughout the night. Matt has such a potty mouth, but it is never used in a vulgar, demeaning way of course. It just added to the ridiculousness of stories and past loves behind many of his introspective songs.

Among my favorite performances that night were: "Lucky Boy", "Sad Songs", and the encore song where he sang a haunting acoustic version of "Suspended" right up-close with the audience.

After the show, my tag-along concert buddy Lizzy told me to employ a strategy she has perfected in the past in her attempts to meet the band or artists post-show. She shared that patience proved fruitful during her days at Hanson concerts. But laugh not, her method worked. After waiting several minutes outside the venue, a smattering of Matt fans gathered with a hope of doing an unoffical meet-and-greet. When I finally spoke with Matt, I remember telling him that I really ejoyed his music, like any fan-dork and he graciously posed for a few photos and autographed my copy of his album cover. It was an awesome moment that capped a great concert!