Matt Pryor
(Vagrant)
Poor Matt Pryor. Every time he gets the urge to try a little tenderness, he feels the need to tip us off by taking on a new identity. New Amsterdams, of course, began as Pryor's unplugged detour from the Get Up Kids. Then, Get Up Kids broke up, and suddenly New Amsterdams were getting all the raucous songs. And now? He's got this understated solo project, a batch of folk-flavored ballads. What's weird is that it could have worked with either project if it weren't for one small detail: it's a one-man show, recorded at home.
The end result is probably as intimate as anything he's ever done, occasionally fleshed out with harmonica, harmonica, organ or banjo. And the words hold up to close inspection, even cracking a bittersweet smile in "Loralai," a breakup song whose mournful tone can't mask the humor of its more inspired moments. "I don't want you to know that I don't want you to go because you've got my only set of keys," he sighs at one point.
Standout Tracks: "Loralai," "Confidence Man" A. WATT
