Musician Dan Matlack cut his teeth playing acoustic guitar while playing professional baseball in the San Diego Padres’ farm system in the 1990’s. Hotels got lonely and the guitar gave the singer-songwriter a much needed outlet for boredom, creativity and expression.
Growing up in Dallas, Texas, Dan developed an affinity for the local alt rock music scene including such bands as The Toadies, Hagfish, Deep Blue Something, Tripping Daisy, and The Nixons. While living in Ohio, Matlack was a part of the ska band Hollow and performed live shows at colleges and in and around Athens and Columbus. After a move to upstate New York in 2000, the influences of folk, bluegrass and bluesy jam bands found their way into the harder alt rock style of Matlack’s music. Recording American Push, his first solo album, in 2003, Matlack played multiple upstate festivals, fairs and local venues as an acoustic singer-songwriter including the Twisted Groove Festival and opening for the American Idol Summer Tour and playing with Red Light District, Fools at Play, Bo Bice, Josh Gracin, and Brian Golden.
The next ten years of music included a move to New York City and then the Jersey Shore with shows at the National Underground, Sullivan Hall, The Red Lion, the Iron Monkey, Automata Chino, The Wonderbar and The Saint. Dan recorded his second solo album, Swells, at Lakehouse Recording Studios in Asbury Park, New Jersey in the winter of 2014. The album draws on alt rock roots and folk influences to push 12 tracks out into the world about living and surviving in and around the Jersey Shore around the time of Hurricane Sandy.
Currently residing in Bradley Beach NJ, Matlack spends much of his musical time playing in Asbury Park and is currently working on production projects for future music in the Asbury Park area.
