Biography
Originating in Britain, the folk-rock outfit Matthew and the Atlas balances time-honored acoustic roots with a modern openness to electronic textures, having been established by vocalist and songwriter Matt Hegarty. His resonant vocals and deeply felt songwriting perspective helped the ensemble achieve its breakthrough via the 2014 album Other Rivers, whose reflective and passionate mix of organic instrumentation and electronic touches won the support of Mumford & Sons. The similarly styled 2016 release Temple contained the worldwide hit “Elijah,” after which Hegarty pursued a more independent recording method for This Place We Live in 2023 and Many Times in 2024.
Born in Aldershot within Hampshire’s Rushmoor district, Hegarty learned guitar on his own at age fifteen and soon played in a band devoted to heavy alternative rock in the vein of System of a Down and Smashing Pumpkins. Although he had already begun writing songs, the process gained greater seriousness once he encountered the work of Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, and Jeff Buckley, along with more recent artists such as Iron & Wine and Sufjan Stevens. Shifting toward folk, he adopted acoustic guitar and banjo for solo performances. During a concert in Woking he met pianist Lindsay West and multi-instrumentalist Dave Millar, who had booked the show, and together they assembled the initial incarnation of Matthew and the Atlas. The frequently changing lineup became fixtures at London’s Notting Hill Arts Club and earned recognition within the U.K.’s emerging folk scene.
Following Hegarty’s self-release of the home-recorded 2009 EP Scavengers, cut on a 12-track setup, the group became one of the earliest signings to Communion Records, the label co-founded by Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons. Communion’s second release was the four-song EP To the North; after touring as openers for Mumford & Sons, Matthew and the Atlas quickly built an audience, and the EP Kingdom of Your Own appeared before the end of 2010. In 2014 the band issued its debut full-length, Other Rivers, revealing a more refined production approach and careful integration of keyboards and electronic percussion. For 2016’s Temple, Hegarty and his collaborators journeyed to Nashville to work with members of Foreign Fields. That year also saw the release of Temple (Unplugged), an acoustic rendering of the same eleven songs. By then the lineup had stabilized around Hegarty, Alex Roberts on guitar, Tommy Heap on bass and keyboards, James Drohan on drums, and Emma Gatrill on harp.
When recording 2019’s Morning Dancer, the group expanded to include Ali Chant on guitar and keyboards plus Gavin Fitzjohn on horns and woodwinds. As with Temple, Hegarty also issued an acoustic counterpart, Morning Dancer (Unplugged). This Place We Live, released in 2023, marked a shift in method: the album was largely captured at Hegarty’s home studio, where he performed nearly every instrument. Co-producer Ali Chant contributed overdubs and completed the mix at Bristol’s Playpen studio. For the following project, 2024’s Many Times, Hegarty adopted an even more stripped-down process, limiting the recording to his voice and guitar alone and tracking live to tape at Rockfield Studios in Wales over just two days.
Born in Aldershot within Hampshire’s Rushmoor district, Hegarty learned guitar on his own at age fifteen and soon played in a band devoted to heavy alternative rock in the vein of System of a Down and Smashing Pumpkins. Although he had already begun writing songs, the process gained greater seriousness once he encountered the work of Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, and Jeff Buckley, along with more recent artists such as Iron & Wine and Sufjan Stevens. Shifting toward folk, he adopted acoustic guitar and banjo for solo performances. During a concert in Woking he met pianist Lindsay West and multi-instrumentalist Dave Millar, who had booked the show, and together they assembled the initial incarnation of Matthew and the Atlas. The frequently changing lineup became fixtures at London’s Notting Hill Arts Club and earned recognition within the U.K.’s emerging folk scene.
Following Hegarty’s self-release of the home-recorded 2009 EP Scavengers, cut on a 12-track setup, the group became one of the earliest signings to Communion Records, the label co-founded by Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons. Communion’s second release was the four-song EP To the North; after touring as openers for Mumford & Sons, Matthew and the Atlas quickly built an audience, and the EP Kingdom of Your Own appeared before the end of 2010. In 2014 the band issued its debut full-length, Other Rivers, revealing a more refined production approach and careful integration of keyboards and electronic percussion. For 2016’s Temple, Hegarty and his collaborators journeyed to Nashville to work with members of Foreign Fields. That year also saw the release of Temple (Unplugged), an acoustic rendering of the same eleven songs. By then the lineup had stabilized around Hegarty, Alex Roberts on guitar, Tommy Heap on bass and keyboards, James Drohan on drums, and Emma Gatrill on harp.
When recording 2019’s Morning Dancer, the group expanded to include Ali Chant on guitar and keyboards plus Gavin Fitzjohn on horns and woodwinds. As with Temple, Hegarty also issued an acoustic counterpart, Morning Dancer (Unplugged). This Place We Live, released in 2023, marked a shift in method: the album was largely captured at Hegarty’s home studio, where he performed nearly every instrument. Co-producer Ali Chant contributed overdubs and completed the mix at Bristol’s Playpen studio. For the following project, 2024’s Many Times, Hegarty adopted an even more stripped-down process, limiting the recording to his voice and guitar alone and tracking live to tape at Rockfield Studios in Wales over just two days.
Albums
Singles
