Mt. Joy perform in The Current studio
May 24, 2018
Matt Quinn and Sam Cooper first got notice as Mt. Joy after posting their song "Astrovan" on Spotify. "We never really had any experience with Spotify before, then all of a sudden [the song] had a million plays in the first month or something like that," Cooper recalls. "At that point, it was like, 'We should do something about this.'"
Do something they did, and Mt. Joy — now a five-piece band comprising Cooper and Quinn along with keyboardist Jackie Miclau, bassist Michael Byrnes and drummer Sotiris Eliopoulos — are on tour in support of their self-titled debut album. Mt. Joy visited The Current recently for an in-studio session hosted by Sean McPherson.
Making the leap from a studio band to a live touring outfit is not always the easiest task, but it's worked well for Mt. Joy. "I think it requires a little bit of luck, which I think we got right away in finding a really good group of musicians that we mesh with really well as people, so I think there's a good connection there," Quinn says. "Everyone sort of wanted the same thing, which was to keep getting better all the time as quickly as we possibly could, and I think we just got really lucky to have a good group of people."
Because the band came together in such a pragmatic way, Quinn understands Mt. Joy's backstory may not be riveting, but he and the group aren't concerned about that. "We have thought a little bit about the biography of this band and how it's potentially uninteresting or something like that, but at the end of the day, what we've always focused on is the songs and trying to make great songs," Quinn explains. "[And] from that, trying to create a live experience that isn't necessarily what you're going to hear on the record. If you just want to drive around and listen to songs, you can do that, but maybe you can come to the show and experience something different as well."
The band's songs are characterized by solid musicianship and well-crafted lyrics. For example, along with "Astrovan," another song from the album that's quickly gaining traction is "Silver Lining." Quinn explains its message of moderation: "I think it was a moment in time that was captured for me that was really more about watching people fall victim to opioids and go down a path of more destructive drug usage. For me, it was sort of a plea to my friends and family, 'If you're going to smoke weed or drink wine or alcohol or whatever, let's stop there.'"
Use the audio player above to hear the entire in-studio session with Mt. Joy.
Songs Performed
"Silver Lining"
"Dirty Love"
"Jenny Jenkins"
All songs from Mt. Joy's 2018 self-titled debut album, available on the Dualtone Music Group imprint.
Hosted by Sean McPherson
Produced by Derrick Stevens
Engineered by Michael DeMark and Brandon Smith
Visuals by Nate Ryan
Web feature by Luke Taylor
External Links
Mt. Joy - official site
Wawa - company site
