“It’s rare in this day and age to find a veteran artist who hasn’t settled into a comfortable groove after more than 20 years. But Matt Boroff is just such an artist: continually pushing at the boundaries of his craft, taking his singularly passionate brand of music to new heights. Over a decades-spanning career that’s seen him share the stage with such critically acclaimed acts as Nirvana, BRMC, Calexico, Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age (to name a few), this multi-talented singer, songwriter and guitarist has traversed a diverse cross-section of musical landscapes, from blistering rock-and- roll peaks to windswept desert highways and gardens of indie-rock ambience. But through it all, Boroff’s vivid lyricism, inventive guitar work and uncompromising vision of music as a vehicle for stirring the soul have remained constant.”
Boroff’s latest solo release is the beautiful and arresting “Grand Delusion.” Working with an impressive roster of collaborators including producer/multi-instrumentalist Alain Johannes (QOTSA, PJ Harvey, Them Crooked Vultures, Desert Sessions), drummer Jack Irons (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam) and, again, vocalist Mark Lanegan (Screaming Trees, QOTSA), Boroff once more plunges listeners into cinematic, fully realized musical worlds that resound with a brooding intensity.
Pulsating grooves, screaming guitars and flickering organ notes combine to create a series of intoxicating moodscapes that defy easy categorization while ringing with the familiar windswept feel of his desert rock beginnings. As the album title suggests, Boroff paints a portrait of a world where self-deception has reached critical mass: his targets include the hostile bark of nationalism, warmongering and addiction to greed. But in spite of troubles that challenge one’s faith in humanity, Boroff maintains an unwavering compassion for the human condition (“I just wanna dissolve myself in you”) while asserting that empathy doesn’t always come easy (“it’s hard to see love behind your mask”).
Throughout, it’s Boroff’s distinct baritone—sometimes smoky, sometimes pleading, always unmistakably cool—that anchors the proceedings, recalling the elemental wisdom of Leonard Cohen one moment, channeling the gritty passion of Waits or Nick Cave the next.
“Grand Delusion” is the inspiring work of an artist at the peak of his powers: conjuring spellbinding sonic panoramas with the help of an all-star lineup, confronting a skewed world with his own unique worldview and equally distinctive delivery, and scaling new heights—as he undoubtedly will continue to do for years to come.
“Plenty of artists have crafted one-man bands; few have come up with something that sounds as unified and coherent as this”
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www.mattboroff.com Muisc video by Karin Bleiweiss and Matt Boroff for - What a Shame, the first single from the upcoming Matt Boroff album - Grand Delusion. (C) 2016 Matt Boroff
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