Matlock Expressway Interview

Photo by Conor Gray Photography

We were fortunate enough to talk to J.D. of Matlock Expressway. He told us about the Oshawa scene, the amazing fans they have and their new single Meanwhile. Here is what he had to say:

Info

Genre: Emo/Pop Punk

Years Active: 2014-Present

Hometown: Oshawa, Ontario
Record Label: None

1) What's your name and role in the band?

I’m Justin Dileo, and I sing, play guitar, and write lyrics in Matlock Expressway.

2) What made you want to be in a pop punk band?

Honestly I don’t know if that was ever a conscious goal. I knew I wanted to play music, and I actually started jamming a lot of heavy metal with our lead guitarist Wess back when we were in high school. We began playing with our other high school friend Brandon, who played drums, and after jamming to some of our favourite songs growing up we started writing more pop-punk sounding songs under the name Matlock Expressway. I don’t think we’ve ever really considered ourselves a straight up pop punk band, mostly due to the variety of influences we have, and as the years have gone on we’re definitely seeing ourselves drift away from a “pop-punk” sound.

3 a) Your band is from Oshawa, How is the scene doing up there?

Since we’ve started there’s been a lot of growth, and we’ve seen it fluctuate a bit recently. There’s not many bands doing what we’re doing there, so it can be tricky putting together shows, but as 2017 came to a close we’ve noticed friends - and friends-of-friends - starting new bands with pop-punk and emo influences, so we’re excited to see where that leads.

3 b) Knowing the scene in Oshawa. how does a band like yours survive in a predominately metal scene?

Honestly, we owe a lot of that to the great support system around us. Our friends always came out in droves, brought out their friends, and introduced new people to our music which has really helped us thrive here. Also Jacob Hamayda from the Moustache Club has done so much for us, and we owe many thanks to him, Mike de Sevigne has always been good to us and we love him for it, as well as our friends and other artists in the scene like Austin Nolan, Kevin Comeau, as well as the guys from LETDOWN for helping us get a foot in the door.

4) Why did you decide to go with the name Matlock Expressway? Are you big Simpsons fans?

Hahaha, yes, absolutely. It’s funny, I think myself and our original drummer Brandon had brainstormed a list of references from the show and it came down to Matlock Expressway and Milpool. With the direction we’re heading in, I feel like Milpool would’ve made a pretty sweet emo band name but hearing people yell “MAAATLOOOCK!!!” at us never gets old, so no regrets. Also when Kieran joined the band we quickly found out he’s a big fan of the show too, so it worked out quite nicely.

5) Being you just released your first music video, what was it like to make one? Are you happy how it came out?

The process for Meanwhile was really interesting. We’d recorded the track in early 2017 and really took our time getting the video ready and making it just right. We actually waited to film most of the video until mid-fall just to get the right aesthetic we wanted for the video. We left it in the hands of Kieran and a colleague of his from Ryerson by the name of Carl Solis, a tremendous videographer. Kieran had written the story concept a few years back, and when we were discussing Meanwhile as a single, the idea was brought up and seemed to make a lot of sense with the song. I was really intrigued and trusted his judgment completely with the video concept. I think Carl had a great vision for the project as well and the two worked together to create something that I personally think is so visually impressive and very emotional. It suits the song so well. The song holds a lot of personal meaning to myself and when I’d seen the first draft of the video I actually cried by the end of it. The story was told very well throughout the video and the actors did a wonderful job. We’re very proud of it and the response to both the video and the song has been amazing.

6 a) How has the response been for Why Is This Time Any Different?

Honestly I think the response for Why Is This Time Any Different was the main reason we kept going and why we wound up recording Meanwhile. We put out our first studio EP not really knowing what to expect. We invested a great deal time and money into it, and went the distance; we got jewel case CDs made for it, made sure it was available on every major online platform…but there was that sinking “what if?” feeling that it might fall on deaf ears and not really mean anything to anyone but us.

Thankfully it was quite the opposite, from the first hour after the midnight release up until today we still get messages from people about the record and we got some really cool opportunities as a result. We had a sold-out album release show a few days after the official release with a packed venue shouting every word off of the EP back at us. Tracks from the EP have been used on a British fashion YouTube channel, as well as in the soundtrack for a developing TV series currently being shown across American film festivals. We’ve also been fortunate enough to get booking offers in cities all around Ontario and Quebec and we’re excited to see what more we can do after future releases.

6 b) What was it like recording your album with Anton DeLost?

Anton is a wizard. The dude thinks of interesting harmonies and does so many little things that don’t seem like much of an adjustment when you’re in the studio with him, but the finished product is so much more evolved and intriguing than the demos you went in with. Aside from being amazing at what he does with the songs he’s also just a really funny dude. He keeps things fun while also being efficient, and I think that’s definitely a quality you want in your producer/audio engineer.

7)  You guys did a little tour with Emborne Drive this summer, how did that go? How were the crowds?

That was a lot of fun. We stayed with Cam from Emborne while we were in Quebec and he’s such an easy-going dude. Then the band crashed in Oshawa at my friend’s place where we went for sort of an impromptu “after-party” after our Oshawa date. The crowds for the shows were pretty engaged, which was nice. We’d played with them in Ottawa at Big Gig, which was a little festival organized by the dudes in Castlefield that featured a lot of great Ontario bands, but also some really awesome touring acts from the states, like Father Mountain, Ratboys, and Perspective, A Lovely Hand To Hold. That show was great just for being able to see and hangout with so many amazing bands/people. The show in Montreal was our favourite of the entire run. We got to play the biggest venue we’d played to date, being Piranha Bar. We were slotted between all of the locals and as a result had a great crowd who piled in for an unknown Ontario band and went all out. We were blown away. From the moment the opening song kicked in everyone was moving and dancing. We played a new song for the first time that night and we were absolutely floored when the crowd was clapping along and then began reaching out to shake our hands and high five us after we’d finished playing it. I had never been to Montreal before and I left with a deep love for the city and the people there (which as a lifelong Leafs fan I never expected!).

8) What is the biggest show you have played so far?

The biggest show we’ve played so far would most likely be our EP release show back in August of 2016. It was a sold-out show at a 120 cap venue and the atmosphere was just incredible. To this day my friends who came out still talk about the show. We’ve played a handful of really great shows since, but nothing’s compared to that night and the amount of people singing along, chanting things between songs, stage diving, and crowd surfing. We wound up sticking around for about 2 hours afterwards just talking to people; signing copies of the album and selling shirts back at our merch table with a line up there the entire time. I was in shock at the time and couldn’t stop smiling and to this day I still can’t believe we got to play a show like that so early in our careers.

9) What team do you pick when playing NHL?

I usually go with the Leafs or the Sharks. I know Kieran’s a big Rangers guy and Wess is a Habs fan (I swear we didn’t know that when we started the band. He just sort of snuck in hahaha.)

10) Any plans for more music to go with your single Meanwhile?

At the moment we’re taking some time away from shows and planning out our next year or two. We’re in the process of writing our next release and we’re excited to get things going in that regard. For now though Meanwhile is well…that: something to listen to meanwhile…

11) Are there any band other than Letdown worth checking out in the Oshawa scene?

I’m personally a big advocate for a new band coming up called Mary&Adelaide. They’re pals of mine, and the songwriting is just so, so very good. They released a single called Gangster Film on Bandcamp this year and no lie/no bias, it is my favourite song I heard in 2017. I’m eagerly awaiting their next release.

Throne To The Wolves are finding success in the heavier scene, so they’re worth checking out if you like that sort of stuff. There’s a Toronto based band called The Way Out, but Chris and Kevin grew up in Oshawa and they write some amazing music, similar to what we do genre-wise. And I’d be contrite not to mention Crown Lands when talking about Oshawa bands. Those dudes rip and they’re very kind souls.

Watch Matlock Expressway's video for Meanwhile below and read our album review here

Published 1/16/2018