It doesn’t matter who you are or what you believe. I’m not concerned with the clothes you wear or how you talk. Your hairstyle may be altogether dissimilar to mine. Your shoes could have wooden soles that sometimes cause you to clop along the marble floors like a cantering colt.
I like horses. And I probably like you, too.
As long as you treat your fellow human beings with a reasonable amount of kindness and respect, this song is free for you.
Thank you for listening! Yes m. (and c.)
Tomorrow night in New York is the last show of our tour. It’s also the last show of the foreseeable future.
This band has always been an amazing experience for me. If you’re reading this, you’re a part of that experience. Thank you. I can’t think of any other way I would’ve wanted to live my life until this point.
It’s time for me to focus on something else in the world. I believe I should focus on my community. I believe I should focus on my friends. And I believe I’d like to make a little whiskey. And we’re posting this celebratory-slash-farewell cover.
Thank you for making my life in music possible.
Yes! m.
There’s something so singular and beautiful about the hazy West Coast sunlight.
To underscore the bittersweet beauty of our last time around the country, we’re premiering a cover of “Used To Be” by Beach House over at Stereogum.
Tonight we play in San Diego. And then we’ll slowly wind our way up the coast to the Pacific Northwest.
Though there are daily, persistent darknesses coming from our management and label, we are energized by the struggle and looking forward to how far we can go with each and every one of these shows.
Here’s to the future. Here’s to the excitement of all the unknowns.
Thank you for listening. Yes.
Hello. Today we begin matt pond PA’s final tour of the United States in Washington, DC. It’s not a goodbye. It’s a bottoms-up and down-the-hatch. It’s a sidestep to the late-night jukebox that won’t stop playing The Pretenders. (In the interim, we’ve put together this album under our side-pseudonym, The Lowlifes. Buy the digital download here.)
We’ll also be touring with the lovely and amazing Laura Stevenson.
And the true, bearded talent of Completions. (Here’s the first video from his kick-ass EP.)
We look forward to seeing you all out at the shows. Yes and yes.
Thanks for listening. m.
Hi, Mom.
It was great to see you in Canada a few weeks ago. The views out onto the Passamaquoddy Bay are always unreal. Going back across the border, my car was fully searched as soon as I mentioned the word “musician.” This overtook my thoughts for the rest of the ten-hour drive.
I’m lucky and honored to have done what I’ve done with my cracked guitar and creaky voice. I don’t deserve anything more, I know that. But I don’t know how much fight or fire I have left in me. Is this even awkward art anymore? Or is it just a clumsy career?
Do you remember when I left Brooklyn with a broken heart and we started a band together at the farmhouse in New Hampshire? (Your keyboard parts were sick. Which actually means amazing.)
Anyway, my musical life has gone far beyond the trivial upheavals of failed relationships and I find myself contorting past any previous points of recognition. I’m losing sight of what I loved about playing music.
Look, I’m fortunate for every single note, for every single fan. But the virtual universe involved in making melody is downright draining. And more than anything, I don’t trust anyone other than Chris anymore. (Of course, I trust Shawn, Tierney, all my friends, all our fans, my neighbors, Mike Campbell, Laura Stevenson and every other musician out there on the planet. I hope the vagueness of my tongue-biting is crystal clear.)
I know you’re proud of me, but I’m still sorry that I didn’t finish school and get business cards affixed with the perfect font, an office with my name etched on the door.
There are further apologies. To musicians, friends and girlfriends, I haven’t always been the best. Sometimes I’ve been the worst. A hubristic pursuit and code of creation above all else has led me here, rethinking all my thoughts, to thinking that perhaps it’s just time to get out of the batter’s box.
As we contemplate new careers, Chris and I are putting out a collection of songs under the name The Lowlifes. It’s an expression of what those border guards (and countless others) are thinking, even if they don’t say it.
I don’t know what’s right or what direction I’m headed in next. I do know that I’m going to take a shot at the distilling world, the bar world and restaurant world.
I know I’m probably not the son that anyone would aim to have. But I definitely tried the best that my brain has to give. Your understanding and support have been everything. Plus, thanks for giving me this consciousness. Even when it all seems lost, at least there is an “it” to be had.
I love you. Matthew.
Hello. My name is Matthew Pond. Or Matt Pond. Or sometimes Matt Pond PA. For now, we’ll operate under our temporary name, The Lowlifes.
What we’d like to do from here on out — is cut out the middleman. Because the middleman often leaves us bewildered. And if you like what we do, this will allow us to keep moving forward. Even if it’s just writing music for us to hear, inside this space.
Every month, we’ll be offering updates through our Patreon site. In the form of a rough new song. Or videos of what we’re up to. Or maybe even one of these Google hangouts. You’re billed monthly. So if you want out at any time, please feel no obligation to continue participating — a one-time contribution is honestly appreciated. We’ll continue to put forward new offers as time goes by. Please stay tuned.
We’re doing this because we want to keep doing this. We’re doing this because after all these years, I realize the interaction is what it’s all about.
Chris and I may not do this forever. We may try our hand at making whiskey. But while we continue to do it — even under a strange new name — we’d really appreciate your help in making it happen.
We will always keep you posted about what’s next. Thank you. For everything. It really means a lot to us.