Double J Pick of the Week - Matthew E. White

Matthew E. White
Rock'n'Roll Is Cold

Few would have been expecting a song this fun from Matthew E White. His debut album Big Inner might have sounded fairly laid back, but it was, at its heart, pretty grim as well. His songs about death, heartbreak, having faith and losing it, painted a remarkably intimate portrait of a talented artist whose self-belief comes in fits.

Rock'n'Roll Is Cold is the first we've heard from Fresh Blood, the follow up to that excellent debut, and from it we can glean that White is perhaps a little happier than he was when making that first album. Whether that's true or not remains to be seen, but the colour instilled by a chirpy piano vamp, groovy horns and R'n'B backing vocals make it sound sunnier than we've ever heard him.

White sounds assured, he projects in a way that suggests he's more confident with his voice and his songs than he was in the past. He also seems less worried about what might be said about him or his work - "Everybody likes to talk shit," he croons.

But this seems like a largely non-personal track, White ruminating more on those who feel like they have the secret to making great music than anything within himself. It's not better than the best songs on his debut, but it hints that Fresh Blood promises to be an interesting record.