Biography
Robert Matarazzo emerged as a songwriter in 2001 after securing a Top Ten placement with the single "Always Come Back to You" from the identically titled Atlantic Records album in the early 1990s; throughout the balance of that decade he favored the close setting of small clubs, coffeehouses, and bars instead of larger stages.
The group That Robert Matarazzo Thing displayed the influences of Radiohead and Coldplay while maintaining a steady schedule at Krogh's Café, Sweet Dreams Café, Café Eclectic, Shakey Jakes, and Green Bean's Café in New Jersey; its roster included Matarazzo on guitar and vocals, Jason Laughlin on electric guitar, Dave Hunscher on bass, and Jonathan Ward on drums, a configuration that began in summer 2001.
The band originated in October 1999 as a duo of Matarazzo and drummer/percussionist Ned Stroh before bassists Brian Herkert of Swampadelica and Dave Von Dolen of Railroad Earth joined for the 2000 Peccavi Records, Ltd. release Diary of an Also-Ran; that same year Matarazzo returned to New Jersey following two years in Los Angeles, where he had raised funds to record the 2001 album Sins and Flaws in Different Shades, and earlier, in 1999, he had cut Thursday, Friday, Sunday with vocalist Nicole Grana and violinist Tim Carbone of From Good Homes.
Matarazzo first encountered Stroh at an open-mic hosted by Carbone at Krogh's Café in New Jersey; when Stroh relocated to Germany to marry his girlfriend, Herkert left for Swampadelica, and Von Dolen joined Railroad Earth, Matarazzo decided to form a fresh lineup under the name That Robert Matarazzo Thing.
Matarazzo and Laughlin connected at Café Eclectic in New Jersey, where they found common ground in '70s British pop and the American group Bread, after which Laughlin recruited additional members from the New Jersey band Seed 'N' Sol.
Matarazzo's prior outfit, Natasha's Brother, signed to Atlantic Records in 1989 once manager Janice Roeg submitted his demo tape to industry executive Ahmet Ertigun; keyboardist William Mallory, Matarazzo's collaborator on the project, departed before the 1991 album Always Come Back to You appeared and generated its title-song Top Ten single for Atlantic Records.
From 1991 to 1994 Matarazzo served as a songwriter with Warner/Chappel Publishing in N.Y.C., co-writing material with Dianne Warren and Robert White Johnson.
Jeanne Mas and the Egoists released his composition "Yesterday's Clear" in France under the title "Anna" in 1997, and in the same year Johnny Halliday recorded his song "What She Don't Know."
Before assembling his initial band Spender with Mallory, Matarazzo performed as an actor in musicals such as The Sound of Music, Oliver, and Shenandoah at regional venues including the Papermill Playhouse, Barn Theater, and the Meadowbrook in New Jersey.
Matarazzo channeled all of these musical experiences into his songwriting, and with the revised lineup That Robert Matarazzo Thing completed another album in August 2001.
The group That Robert Matarazzo Thing displayed the influences of Radiohead and Coldplay while maintaining a steady schedule at Krogh's Café, Sweet Dreams Café, Café Eclectic, Shakey Jakes, and Green Bean's Café in New Jersey; its roster included Matarazzo on guitar and vocals, Jason Laughlin on electric guitar, Dave Hunscher on bass, and Jonathan Ward on drums, a configuration that began in summer 2001.
The band originated in October 1999 as a duo of Matarazzo and drummer/percussionist Ned Stroh before bassists Brian Herkert of Swampadelica and Dave Von Dolen of Railroad Earth joined for the 2000 Peccavi Records, Ltd. release Diary of an Also-Ran; that same year Matarazzo returned to New Jersey following two years in Los Angeles, where he had raised funds to record the 2001 album Sins and Flaws in Different Shades, and earlier, in 1999, he had cut Thursday, Friday, Sunday with vocalist Nicole Grana and violinist Tim Carbone of From Good Homes.
Matarazzo first encountered Stroh at an open-mic hosted by Carbone at Krogh's Café in New Jersey; when Stroh relocated to Germany to marry his girlfriend, Herkert left for Swampadelica, and Von Dolen joined Railroad Earth, Matarazzo decided to form a fresh lineup under the name That Robert Matarazzo Thing.
Matarazzo and Laughlin connected at Café Eclectic in New Jersey, where they found common ground in '70s British pop and the American group Bread, after which Laughlin recruited additional members from the New Jersey band Seed 'N' Sol.
Matarazzo's prior outfit, Natasha's Brother, signed to Atlantic Records in 1989 once manager Janice Roeg submitted his demo tape to industry executive Ahmet Ertigun; keyboardist William Mallory, Matarazzo's collaborator on the project, departed before the 1991 album Always Come Back to You appeared and generated its title-song Top Ten single for Atlantic Records.
From 1991 to 1994 Matarazzo served as a songwriter with Warner/Chappel Publishing in N.Y.C., co-writing material with Dianne Warren and Robert White Johnson.
Jeanne Mas and the Egoists released his composition "Yesterday's Clear" in France under the title "Anna" in 1997, and in the same year Johnny Halliday recorded his song "What She Don't Know."
Before assembling his initial band Spender with Mallory, Matarazzo performed as an actor in musicals such as The Sound of Music, Oliver, and Shenandoah at regional venues including the Papermill Playhouse, Barn Theater, and the Meadowbrook in New Jersey.
Matarazzo channeled all of these musical experiences into his songwriting, and with the revised lineup That Robert Matarazzo Thing completed another album in August 2001.
Albums
Singles
