Matthew Marsh to Play New Concept Album at Joe's Pub, 3/1

Matthew Marsh, the New York based composer and vocalist, is all geared up with his band to release his album Detroit ReZoning. Two years in the works, the album is an ode to the city of Detroit from an "Ex-suburbanite," seen through the lens of de-urbanization and Social justice.

Marsh and his 14-piece band will perform the album on March 1st at 11:30pm at Joe's Pub at the historic Public Theater, one of New York City's most celebrated venues for emerging and established performance artists. This will only be the third performance of these songs, the second taking place in Plymouth, MI summer of 2012.

All music was composed and arranged by Marsh in the spring of 2011, in his final semester at New York University. It was premiered at a live performance in May in conjunction with a Kickstarter video campaign, which raised than $3,500 from donors across the country. With the donor support, Marsh bought tickets home to Detroit and recorded the album at Tempermill Studios in Ferndale, MI. Back-up vocals were performed by the Sacred Heart Gospel Choir in Detroit. The album also features vocalist Barrie Mclain, a good friend of Marsh, who has been a part of the project since its inception.

Detroit ReZoning is a concept album/song cycle about the current Renaissance of young artists celebrating Detroit as a cultural and historical melting pot. Landmarks that have taken musical form in the album include The Detroit Downtown Monorail ("People Mover"), the abandoned MCS ("Michigan Central Station"), the demolished Hudson Department Store ("Hush Little Hudson Demolition"), and the Davidson Freeway. The album also draws from Detroit's cultural and Social climates, both contemporary and historical. The process began in early 2011, with a series of phone interviews from Friends and family who grew up in Detroit, which later manifested as song ideas. The March 1st performance marks a Turning Point for The Matthew Marsh Band.

The company has performed at smaller NYC venues (Zirzamin Music Parlor, The Bowery Electric) but the stages are barely large enough to house the group, which includes both horn and string sections. Marsh has been working on establishing a unified identity for TMMB, an identity he wants to "grow organically and that is able to sustain itself." The

large ensemble of musicians is composed of a variety of styles, musical backgrounds,
and personalities, "But when we?re all together, something really special happens...everyone is super talented and focused...every member in the group has been studying music, whether it be classical, jazz, or theater all their lives...and they bring their best to the songs I?m trying to write," Marsh says. "But when rehearsals are over," he reports, "the group doesn?t leave. Everybody stays and hangs out and just enjoys each other. "We?re becoming a nice little family," Rachael Duddy, one of the three singers in the group, beams. In a way, their performance at Joe?s Pub will be their debut, at large, as an ensemble.

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