Mat Brooke
Encyclopedia
Mathew Etter "Mat" Brooke is the lead singer of American rock band Grand Archives
and a former member of the bands Band of Horses
and Carissa's Wierd
.
and Jenn Ghetto
. In 1997 the trio moved to Olympia, Washington
for a year before becoming bored with that city and moving to Seattle. Brooke and Ghetto had met in Tucson aged fifteen and had briefly both lived in a poetry commune in Michigan
.
In July 2010 Brooke announced that he and Jenn Ghetto had bought the rights to Carissa's Wierd's back catalogue from Sad Robot Records. He said, “Me and Jenn have been working for a while to buy back the rights to all of our records and we finally were able to get them all back.” This should allow all of Carissa's Wierd's albums to be re-released soon.
Brooke played guitar on Band of Horses first album, Everything All the Time
, and wrote two of the tracks, "I Go to the Barn Because I Like the" and "St. Augustine." He left the band soon after the release of the album, "I'd never really given the commitment to be a formal member. It was just a spur of the moment...and Everything All the Time took off really fast...I still didn't feel quite committed. It was still 100 percent Ben's project and I kinda wanted to see what else I could do."
and Modest Mouse
and were featured by the influential music website Pitchfork Media
.
Grand Archives released their debut album, The Grand Archives on Sub Pop
Records in February 2008. They toured the U.S. and Europe to promote the album. They became a four-piece in November 2008 when multi-instrumentalist Ron Lewis left the band.
The band's second album, Keep in Mind Frankenstein, was released in September 2009. The band again toured North America and Europe to promote the album. On the tour, Brooke's former Carissa's Wierd bandmate Robin Peringer played guitar and keyboards. The band played a short tour of Europe and the west coast of the USA in July and August 2010, during which Brooke announced that they hoped to record their third album shortly. A demo of four songs from the album, titled Villains, was released as a free download on October 7, 2010. Three more free demos were made available in June 2011.
in December 2009.
Grand Archives
Grand Archives is an American indie rock band that formed in Seattle. They were originally called Archives and are led by principal songwriter Mat Brooke, formerly of Carissa's Wierd and Band of Horses.-The Grand Archives:...
and a former member of the bands Band of Horses
Band of Horses
Band of Horses, originally briefly known as Horses, are an American rock band formed in 2004 in Seattle by Ben Bridwell. They have released three studio albums, the most recent and most successful of which is 2010's Grammy nominated Infinite Arms...
and Carissa's Wierd
Carissa's Wierd
Carissa's Wierd was an indie rock band from Seattle that formed in 1995 and disbanded in late 2003. Their sound has been described as "chamber rock". The band deliberately misspelled the word "Weird" in their name...
.
Early life
In the mid 1990s, Brooke worked selling pizza in Tucson, Arizona with future bandmates Ben BridwellBen Bridwell
Benjamin "Ben" Bridwell is the lead singer of American rock band Band of Horses and a former member of the band Carissa's Wierd.-Early life:Bridwell was born on April 25, 1978 and grew up in Irmo, South Carolina...
and Jenn Ghetto
Jenn Ghetto
Jenn Ghetto is a singer-songwriter and guitarist who performs under the name S. She is a former member of the band Carissa's Wierd.-Early life:...
. In 1997 the trio moved to Olympia, Washington
Olympia, Washington
Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat of Thurston County. It was incorporated on January 28, 1859. The population was 46,478 at the 2010 census...
for a year before becoming bored with that city and moving to Seattle. Brooke and Ghetto had met in Tucson aged fifteen and had briefly both lived in a poetry commune in Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
.
Carissa's Wierd
In Seattle, Brooke and Ghetto formed Carissa's Wierd, who released three studio albums, the first two on Bridwell's Brown Records label. The band broke up in 2003, since when three compilation albums have been released. Carissa's Wierd reformed for a one off show in Seattle on July 9, 2010.In July 2010 Brooke announced that he and Jenn Ghetto had bought the rights to Carissa's Wierd's back catalogue from Sad Robot Records. He said, “Me and Jenn have been working for a while to buy back the rights to all of our records and we finally were able to get them all back.” This should allow all of Carissa's Wierd's albums to be re-released soon.
Band of Horses
Following the breakup of Carissa's Wierd, Ben Bridwell formed the group Band of Horses, which he invited Brooke to join. Brooke explained what happened, "So they ended up getting a show opening up for Iron and Wine in Seattle and Ben asked if I would just come up and do a couple songs, just 'cause we're friends. So...I did that. It was fun and then a couple of Iron and Wine tours came up...and then next thing I knew, we were in the studio making a record for Sub Pop."Brooke played guitar on Band of Horses first album, Everything All the Time
Everything all the Time
-Personnel:*Ben Bridwell - Vocals, guitar*Mat Brooke - Guitar, co-lead vocals on tracks 8 & 10*Chris Early - Bass guitar*Tim Meinig / Sera Cahoone - Drums-Chart performance:-Songs from Everything All the Time in popular culture:...
, and wrote two of the tracks, "I Go to the Barn Because I Like the" and "St. Augustine." He left the band soon after the release of the album, "I'd never really given the commitment to be a formal member. It was just a spur of the moment...and Everything All the Time took off really fast...I still didn't feel quite committed. It was still 100 percent Ben's project and I kinda wanted to see what else I could do."
Grand Archives
After taking some time off to open a bar in Seattle, Brooke formed the band Grand Archives with fellow Seattle musicians Ron Lewis, Thomas Wright, Curtis Hall and Jeff Montano. They played as support band for notable acts such as Sera CahooneSera Cahoone
Sera Cahoone is a singer-songwriter from Seattle, Washington. Cahoone's music combines elements of both classic country-western and modern indie rock and lo-fi....
and Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. They are based in Portland, Oregon. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think...
and were featured by the influential music website Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
.
Grand Archives released their debut album, The Grand Archives on Sub Pop
Sub Pop
Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...
Records in February 2008. They toured the U.S. and Europe to promote the album. They became a four-piece in November 2008 when multi-instrumentalist Ron Lewis left the band.
The band's second album, Keep in Mind Frankenstein, was released in September 2009. The band again toured North America and Europe to promote the album. On the tour, Brooke's former Carissa's Wierd bandmate Robin Peringer played guitar and keyboards. The band played a short tour of Europe and the west coast of the USA in July and August 2010, during which Brooke announced that they hoped to record their third album shortly. A demo of four songs from the album, titled Villains, was released as a free download on October 7, 2010. Three more free demos were made available in June 2011.
Personal life
Brooke is the co-owner of the Redwood Bar in the Capitol Hill area of Seattle. He married his partner Lisa, who is also a co-owner of the Redwood, in HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
in December 2009.
External links
- Grand Archives at FacebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
- Grand Archives at Sub PopSub PopSub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...