If I'm going to be honest, there are two very specific reasons why I like Matt Mays (and additionally Matt Mays & El Torpedo):
1.) Matt Mays reminds me of Ryan Adams (and, additionally, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals)
2.) Matt Mays is the kind of music you would listen to on a night highway when you are in a car driving away from something important towards something new.
Neither of these two reasons should take away from the fact that Matt Mays is a talented and very impressive artist. The guitar riffs are solid, the lyrics are decent cowboy-poetry. It is Marlboro Man indie rock. It's music sung by the disheveled looking guy in a plaid shirt drinking herbal tea at Starbucks but scoffing the "Establishment." He will drink straight whiskey in concert, but take home a girl who shops at American Apparel.
Standout tracks, "Your Heart" which might as well be a Ryan Adams b-side from the recording of Jacksonville City Nights, and "Where Am I Going?"
Matt Mays' self-titled album lacks the rock quality of an album like Terminal Romance, but it certainly has its own quality to offer. It's a quality indie-rock album that turns into a quality alt-country album by the end. It's a little ADD, but a lot of good music.
***.5 out of *****
3.5 out of 5
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