Matt Clark
Anchored - United States

Overview

When one is growing up, they have many aspirations for the future. For drummer Matty Clark, playing music was the only plan on the agenda. Born into a musical family with his father playing blues guitar for over three decades and all of his siblings also playing six-strings as well as singing, the natural progression was for the young Matty to follow in his family’s footsteps. “I grew up around guitars constantly,” states Matty. The irony that he faced was not picking up a guitar until years later. Instead, he fell in love with the drums at the tender age of 6. The idea of drums was more appealing as Matty faced a bit of a road block in attempting to learn to play the guitar left-handed, (he would later teach himself to play right-handed). Playing constantly and professionally for the last 13 years, Matty has assembled sufficient and impressive experience for a young drummer’s resume.

Growing up in Sacramento, CA, Matty admired the area’s heroes such as Deftones’ Abe Cunningham and former Papa Roach drummer, Dave Buckner, before branching out into other genres of music. “When my taste for music started to broaden, I started studying different drummers and trying to incorporate different styles,” says Matty. He began developing his own style after discovering the talents of Tommy Lee, Mike Portnoy, Carter Beauford, Jojo Mayer, and David Garibaldi. These different influences would be instrumental in Matty’s playing going forward in the many projects he’s been involved with thereafter.

Matty began polishing his skills as a hired gun for an array of different ventures. His very first performance was at age 12 with an elite drum line at Arco Arena (home to the NBA’s Sacramento Kings) for Governor Gray Davis’ inauguration. Matty was also involved in a studio session for rock producer Sylvia Massey, with one of his first projects in Sacramento rock band, Endever (now known as Endever After). A few years later, he was hired by International artist Mehdi, who toured as the special guest opening for the Cirque De Soleil shows during the early 2000s. An achievement that Matty is particularly proud of was when he was contacted to replace his friend and early inspiration, former Simon Says drummer Mike Johnston, in a project that also featured ex-Splender front man, Waymon Boone, in the band Headrush. This timely venture would lead Matty to the present with his latest endeavor.

Matty is currently showcasing his talents in the Texas rock band, Anchored. 2010 saw the drummer and his new band circulating the country on the strength of their debut album, “Listen To This.”, supporting everyone from Saliva and Steve Adler’s Appetite to Seether and Three Days Grace, to name a few. Riding the wave off the sports stadium-ready first single, “Dirty in Texas,” the band is currently breaking into rock and pop radio rotations with their sophomore single, “Last Night.” The future looks bright for the young drummer and a new face he surely will not be for long. Catch Matty and Anchored keeping it dirty on tour in a city near you.

Links

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