Matthew J. Tow is an Australian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Perhaps best known as the singer and guitarist of 1990s Sydney indie band Drop City,[1] Tow currently fronts international neo-psychedelic rockers the Lovetones.[2]
Matthew J. Tow | |
|---|---|
 Tow performing in 2013 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Matt Tow |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, sitar, autoharp, bass guitar, keyboards, glockenspiel |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Labels | Red Eye Records,Polydor Records,Universal, The Committee to Keep Music Evil/ Bomp!, Undercover /Yep Records,Teepee Records,Cargo,Space Age Recordings, 3rd Stone Records, Summershine/Sub Pop, Planting Seeds Records,Cleopatra Records |
Splash
editTow's first experience as a recording artist came with early 1990s Sydney indie band Splash[3] (which also included singer-songwriter Gavin Mclean), who released a four-track EP titled Pendulum in 1991. The Tow–Mclean songwriting partnership would spill over onto early Drop City releases.
Drop City
editTow formed Drop City (also known as Drop City Three) in Sydney at the beginning of 1993.[4] Later that year, they recorded their first album A Revolution of Purely Private Expectations which was released on the Red Eye label through Polydor in 1994. Two more albums were to follow; Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow and, Chiaroscuro. After four albums, a handful of EPs, two Big Day Out appearances and tour support for artists such as the Stone Roses, Stereolab, Yo La Tengo and Manic Street Preachers, Drop City disbanded in late 2000 amid what Tow described as a 'tidal wave of indifference'.[5]
Drop City discography:
| Album | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| A Revolution Of Purely Private Expectations | 1994 | Red Eye Records, Polydor |
| Magic Transistor Radio | 1995 | Red Eye Records, Polydor |
| This Heavenly Machine | 1997 | Red Eye Records, Polydor |
| Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow | 1999 | Third Stone |
| The New Situation | 2000 | Rayman Recordings |
Colorsound
editIn 1994, Tow recorded a solo album You're Only As Good As Your Sound under the moniker of Colorsound which was picked up by Summershine Records in Australia. The following year it was released in the US on Sub Pop. He has since released a further four albums in this guise.[6] These releases are typically instrumental and experimental.
Colorsound Discography:
| Album | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| You're Only As Good As Your Sound | 1994 | Summershine Records |
| Soundtrack for an Imaginary Life | 1998 | Spaceage Recordings |
| Auspicious Beginnings | 2001 | Third Stone |
| You're Only As Good As Your Sound (reissue) | 2002 | Rayman Recordings |
| Kaleides into Me | 2003 | Rayman Recordings |
| A Higher Station | 2004 | Rayman Recordings |
Brian Jonestown Massacre
editIn 2003, Tow had the opportunity to join long-time friend Anton Newcombe and his San Francisco–based psychedelic outfit, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, touring the US and the UK with them for three months as a guitarist. He also contributed two songs to their 2003 album ...And This is Our Music. Tow's opening track "Starcleaner" later also appeared on the BJM retrospective Tepid Peppermint Wonderland.
The Lovetones
edit
The Lovetones released their debut album, Be What You Want, in 2002 through Bomp! Records. The album was reviewed in Creem and Rolling Stone magazine. The second album, Meditations, was released through New York's Tee Pee Records in late 2005. Returning from shows in the US in late 2005 and also at SXSW 2006, The Lovetones toured to support Meditations' Australian release in May 2006. In June 2006 The Lovetones completed a European tour across 12 countries with The Brian Jonestown Massacre in support of Meditations, released there through Tee Pee/Cargo Records, culminating in an album review in respected UK magazine Uncut. The Lovetones also recorded their third album, Axiom, during 2006 with sessions split between Figment Studios in Hollywood and the Sydney Opera House Recording Studio. The new album was released in June 2007 through Tee Pee Records.
The Lovetones performed a reunion show in Sydney on 31 July 2015. And in 2023 began releasing new singles:[7] "Way the Light Dances", "Everything Changed", and 2024's "Seven Days" (a remake of a track off Matt's first solo album).
The Lovetones discography:
| Album | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Be What You Want | 2003 | Committee To Keep Music Evil (U.S.) / Yep! Records (Aus) |
| Meditations | 2005 | Tee Pee Records (U.S.) / Yep! Records (Aus) |
| Axiom | 2007 | Tee Pee Records (U.S.) / Yep! Records (Aus) |
| Dimensions | 2009 | Planting Seeds Records (U.S.) |
| Lost | 2010 | Planting Seeds Records (U.S.) |
| Provenance – Collected Works | 2012 | Yep! Records, Undercover Music (Aus) |
Personal life
editTow is married and lives in Sydney.
His first solo album, The Way of Things, was released in February 2013 and the follow-up, Shadows' Reign, was released in 2016 by Xemu Records.
References
edit- ^ "A Milestone Interview with Matthew J. Tow of The Lovetones". The Process Records. 20 July 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
- ^ "Biography". Xemu Records. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
- ^ "Don't Look Up writing credits". Discogs. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
- ^ "Drop City Biography". Australian Music Online. Archived from the original on 10 August 2008.
- ^ "An Interview with The Lovetones". ozmusicproject.net. Archived from the original on 26 July 2008.
- ^ "Colorsound's Bandcamp Page". Bandcamp.
- ^ "The Lovetones' Bandcamp Page". Bandcamp. Retrieved 19 August 2024.