PHOTO: SEAN HANSEN | “‘Whoa’ sparked from the memory of sledding in northern New Hampshire. The biting cold and the purest love of a red-faced girl with frozen snot on her philtrum.”
“We went to Iceland to unearth that same purity, searching for true beauty. We blasted through the countryside in a flimsy hire car. From city to sea, geyser to glacier. Every moment was mindblowing. The bright green and black lava fields, the tempestuous sea at Vik, racing bikes down the streets of Reykjavik, jumping in the ocean at Jökulsárlón, emerging from a pitch-black cavern into a field filled with ponies.
Adventures are strange beasts. If they’re true-hearted, then there’s no time for sentience. Second guesses, sarcasm, and social media all vanish with the mist in the midst of a proper quest.” —Matt Pond
Fully titled “Whoa (Thirteen and Sledding With Kerry in Northern New Hampshire),” the track on matt pond PA’s newest album is a jaunty celebration with a video to match.
An album inspired by his upbringing in snowy New Hampshire, aptly named Winter Lives, contains songs fit to listen to curled up by the fire as well as those for romping through the snow. “Whoa” is a song for the latter—and the video will have you packing your bags for Iceland where it was filmed. The clip features Matt Pond and his right-hand man Chris Hansen exploring lavish landscapes and quirky cities, with cinematography that makes the music video feel like a 4-minute Icelandic documentary.
Winter Lives is the first release from Pond’s own label, 131 Records, and includes a balance of original, instrumental, and cover songs.
matt pond PA is on the road for a short Northeast tour which kicked off on December 3 in their adopted hometown of Kingston, New York, and concludes on December 11 in Washington, DC. In February, they will begin a U.S. tour with Laura Burhenn of The Mynabirds. Burhenn is a distinct singer-songwriter who also performed on Winter Lives.
matt pond PA TOUR DATES
12/07 – Pittsburgh, PA – Club Café
12/08 – Boston, MA – Great Scott
12/09 – Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts
12/10 – Brooklyn, NY – Knitting Factory
12/11 – Washington, DC – DC9
