MATT ANDERSEN
THE BIG BOTTLE OF JOY
UPLIFTING NEW ALBUM OUT NOW
SHARES SINGLE “LET IT SLIDE”
WATCH LIVE PERFORMANCE VIDEO
Credit: GR+AG Studio | Gessy & Armel
“The Big Bottle Of Joy uncorks the atmosphere that Andersen does best.”
Classic Rock
“One of the most talented and distinctive singers in his roots-oriented genre”
American Songwriter
March 10th 2023 – Matt Andersen releases The Big Bottle of Joy today via Sonic Records. The Big Bottle of Joy is all about celebration – hard-won, overflowing, exuberant celebration; a dozen songs infused with raw blues-rock, rollicking Americana, thoughtful folk, and ecstatic gospel.
The Big Bottle of Joy lives up to the grand title from its opening song and latest single, “Let It Slide”. Matt shared the live performance video for the single today to coincide with the album release. The muscular, organ-drenched track, urges people to chill out and be good to each other, “This song is calling out the people who concern themselves with things that don’t really concern them. If you’re only speaking up to hear yourself talk, best to leave it alone. Let it slide,” explains Matt.
Throughout the record, Matt finds reason to sustain this celebration of the life we share together everywhere – on the road, missing a lover; between the sheets in a southern Ontario motel room; from Montreal “all the way to New Orleans;” in a “little kitchen ballroom” on a quiet night at home. Matt testifies to something we could all do well to remember: the time we have together is special, so let’s spend it the right way.
“Being good to each other, you know, in taking care of each other – those are the biggest things I want to put out there,” Matt says. “If we’re in it together, it’ll be a lot easier than trying to do it on our own.”
Appropriately, The Big Bottle of Joy was a team effort. The title doesn’t just refer to the record, but the band that Andersen put together to make it. The songs were written with not just a band in mind, but this exact group of people, and Andersen tailored moods and arrangements and sections to elevate the already substantial talents of the players. The approach gave them the best possible scenario to record live-off-the-floor at The Sonic Temple, and the individual performances – shot through with the kind of dynamism that can only come from being in a room together – flow seamlessly into each other. The Big Bottle of Joy band features Reeny Smith, Haliey Smith, Micah Smith (vocals), Geoff Arsenault (drums), Mike Farrington Jr (bass), Cory Tetford (guitar), Kim Dunn (piano), and Chris Kirby (organ).
“Somebody told me a long time ago that when you put a band together, you need to make yourself the weakest musician,” Matt says. “So that’s always what I’ve done. And they’re all just absolutely monstrous at what they do.”
The Big Bottle of Joy’s songs were crafted in collaboration with some of the finest songwriters in the game. Terra Spencer, Carleton Stone, Breagh Isabel, Dylan Guthro, Dave Sampson, Ian Janes, Andy Stochansky, Ross Neilsen, Cory Tetford, Chris Kirby, Clayton Bellamy, Jason Blaine, and Donovan Woods all make appearances in the credits. It was recorded by Lil Thomas at The Sonic Temple in Halifax, Nova Scotia; mixed by Steve Dawson; mastered by Kim Rosen at Knack Mastering; and produced by Matt Andersen himself.
Matt Andersen & The Big Bottle of Joy is out now via Sonic Records.
- Let It Slide
- So Low, Solo
- Golden
- How Far Will You Go
- Aurora
- Miss Missing You
- What’s on My Mind
- Keep Holding On
- Rolling Down the Road
- Only an Island
- Hands of Time
- Shoes
About Matt Andersen:
When Matt Andersen steps on stage, he brings a lifetime of music to every note he plays. His latest album, The Big Bottle of Joy, is all about hard-won celebration; a dozen songs infused with raw blues-rock, rollicking Americana, thoughtful folk, and ecstatic gospel. Andersen’s stage presence, buoyed by his spectacular live band (also called The Big Bottle of Joy), is informed by decades of cutting his teeth in dusty clubs, dim-lit bars, and grand theatres all over the world, delivering soulful performances that run the gamut from intimate to wall-shaking. In the studio, he’s always brought the same attention to detail and commitment to craft as he has to his live show, and the result—a multi-faceted and poignant body of work—has led him to amass over 23 million streams on Spotify and 26 million views on YouTube. In addition to headlining major festivals, clubs and theatres throughout North America, Europe and Australia, he has shared the stage and toured with Marcus King, Beth Hart, Marty Stuart, Greg Allman, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Randy Bachman, Jonny Lang, Serena Ryder, and more. His very well-received UK tour in 2022 led one critic to declare in his 5-star review “Andersen is a true master of his craft, with emotion to burn, and white hot guitar playing.” (Chaz Brooks, Building Our Own Nashville). Andersen nabbed the 2013 and 2016 European Blues Awards for Best Solo/Acoustic Act, was the first ever Canadian to take home top honours in the solo category at the 2010 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, won the CIMA Road Gold award in 2015, and has won multiple Maple Blues Awards.