Jamie Higgs | Matt Connarton Unleashed

0:00 Speaker 1: That's another great track from Jamie Higgs. And we're gonna be talking with Jamie in just a moment. Welcome everybody. We've entered our number two new marrowed dose of Matt Connorton Unleashed and we are live from the studios of w m n H ninety five point three FM and Glorious Manchester, New Hampshire. And of course you can listen to the show from anywhere. Go to Matt connorton dot com slash live for all your live streaming options, social media links, contact info, show archives, et cetera, et cetera.

0:25 Speaker 1: If you are listening live. Today is Saturday, November twenty second, twenty twenty five, and let's see. I think we have Jamie on the line with us. Hi, Jamie, are you there.

0:34 Speaker 2: I'm Hea Muss. How about you?

0:35 Speaker 1: Hey, doing well? Welcome back to the show. It's great to have you back.

0:39 Speaker 2: Yeah, thank you Betty much. I'm glad to be back.

0:41 Speaker 1: Home, absolutely so. I love that song we talk. Of course, the last time we add you on you just come out with peace and your Sound, which we are going to play again at the end of our conversation today. But I love I love this song. We talk. That is so good. Everything about it is great. I love your voice, the production is great. Just a really really great track. And this is this is pretty new, right, this just came out.

1:04 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's a month or so old.

1:06 Speaker 1: Okay, okay, yeah, so so pretty new. What can you tell us about this about this song? Like, what is it? Uh? You know, it's I feel like there's some deeper meaning to the lyrics. But uh. And you know, when we had you on before, we talked a lot about the meaning of the lyrics a piece in your sound. But I'm curious about we talk what this song means to you?

1:30 Speaker 2: It is.

1:32 Speaker 3: Yeah, I'll be I've been with my wife now for ten years.

1:38 Speaker 2: Okay, maney just over the year, but we've been together ten years. Yeah.

1:44 Speaker 3: If you've been in a long tend relationship, you'll know there's ups and downs. Sure, and this was a song about one of the downs. I was speaking to me mate, he was having a similar low with his girlfriend at the time. Yeah, we're just saying, like we end up sitting up late talking and yeah, I was just thinking about how problems and we just we talked through them.

2:09 Speaker 1: Yeah.

2:10 Speaker 3: Yeah, that was like kind of the idea of the song, Well, I kind of one of the songs to finish unresolved, right, So you don't actually know whether they figured that I was sold, whether they broke up.

2:23 Speaker 1: Interesting, interesting idea. Yeah, so this is a deeply personal one to you. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, So I remember, I remember when we talked about Piece in your Sound. I mean that you know that that song was personal too, in the sense that from from what I recall from our conversation, it was about how, you know, finding you know, kind of finding peace in the chaos of life and and uh but but this one obviously, but I think both songs are are highly relatable. This one is relatable because anyone who's been in a long term relationship, you know, you do go through your ups and downs and or even a short term relationship.

2:58 Speaker 1: And uh uh, so I think this is very relatable as well. But when you when you write a song like this and then and then your wife here is it like what? Well, I'm curious what the what the reaction is, I mean, does she like it or does she kind of say, oh, I don't know, this is a little much, or what like, how does she respond to it? When you present a song like this jor.

3:22 Speaker 2: Yeah, I fully get the nerves laughter it.

3:26 Speaker 3: I get it because I was unsure how she'll reactively, but she actually preferred it ding yeah, which I was surprised because I think Piecing sounds a better sort of song genetically.

3:40 Speaker 2: Okay, Well, I suppose.

3:42 Speaker 3: Anyone who understands that song kind of connects with it. Yeah, So it's got because it's got that deeper meaning where piecing sounds a bit more. It's a bit more for everyone, right, we.

3:59 Speaker 2: Got more of a specific audience. Yeah, And obviously because Tasha.

4:04 Speaker 3: And my wife knew where to come from, I think she's just kind of related with it.

4:08 Speaker 1: Sure, But so she really likes this one.

4:11 Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, good, it's a I'd say it's a better.

4:15 Speaker 3: Written song, okay, okay in terms of song writing perspective.

4:20 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. Does she give you feedback like, like does she does she ever say, like, you know, I don't know I would change this or or maybe do this differently, or does she just does she just kind of take it in and give you her her overall impression of it.

4:36 Speaker 2: She kind of just stays away from it, does she really?

4:40 Speaker 1: Yeah?

4:40 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's kind of like, well, that's like my outlet.

4:46 Speaker 3: Yeah, which is obviously why a lot of MEW songs come out personal. Yeah, it's like my it's like my personal therapy.

4:54 Speaker 1: Oh interesting, Yeah, yeah, now that makes sense. I'm also curious too. So the last time we talked, which that wasn't that long ago, but I think, tell me if I'm remembering this correctly, you were in the process of putting a band, because you you've been operating as a solo artist. But I think you you were either in the process of putting a band together or you had put a band together. Am I on the right track with that?

5:18 Speaker 2: You are on the right track? Mark? Yeah, okay.

5:21 Speaker 3: I basically put a quick band together for a gig in the June. Yeah, and then through like July and August it was a bit chop and changey, and then now we've settled.

5:35 Speaker 2: Into a good band okay. Yeah, quite consistent, No, okay, excellent.

5:41 Speaker 1: Well, like like when you when you talk about you know, some of the the problems with with putting the band together at first, like what what did you run into was it was it difficult to find people who just you know, were who could play well enough to pull these songs off live or what was you know, because I've been in bands and I know there are a lot of different challenges. Is this you know when you're starting something kind of new or you have people you know, you've got your established project and you have people you're bringing into it.

6:06 Speaker 1: Yeah, No, there's there's a lot of things that can that can come up.

6:10 Speaker 2: Yeah, no ideas that I think the biggest thing for me is chemistry. H I think it.

6:19 Speaker 3: Like if if you're a good guitarist, but you need a great guitarist, Yeah, but the chemistry is right, they can get better, true, so Jeremy.

6:28 Speaker 2: So it's like the chemistry is kind of more important than the ability.

6:32 Speaker 3: Luckily, we seem to have struck gold and we have both chemistry and quality in our band.

6:39 Speaker 2: So yeah, any lucky.

6:41 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, that's that's excellent. Yeah. So how long has the It can't have been too long now, right, a few months that the current lineup has existed.

6:52 Speaker 2: Yeah.

6:52 Speaker 3: So I think we torn maybe the last four or five gigs with the same band. Okay, maybe maybe like one or two couldn't make it or something. So yeah, we've maybe like we've used Tom on Basse for one gig and then Hardison who plays keyboard.

7:13 Speaker 2: He's missed two so gigs just because he's so busy. Sure, so pass from that, but pretty solid.

7:21 Speaker 1: Yeah, good good. Now do you feel like, how do you feel on stage with a band versus if you're if you're kind of doing the solo thing, because you know, to me, I mean just from my own experience, when you're when you're with a band, it's kind of the safety in numbers, right, Like you just you're all in it together, and it just feels like there's there's not as much that can you know, even if something goes wrong, you know you're you're all you're all in there together. You're like a like a little army, a little battalion on stage.

7:49 Speaker 1: I mean, that's that's kind of how I always thought of it. But I'm curious how the how the transition has been for you, especially where you know these these players are coming in and playing your music that that you've created. I mean, do you feel more confident with the band on stage or is it harder? In some ways?

8:05 Speaker 2: I think it was harder first because I was just so used to me and my guitar. Can you can kind of go where you feel.

8:13 Speaker 3: With the band, it's got to be a bit more structured and follow the music. Yeah, but now I've kind of settled into that.

8:22 Speaker 2: It's so much better. I feel like Superman on stage. It's like.

8:30 Speaker 3: I don't want to describe, but I still love me acoustic gigs because that's a intimate and personal and you can really like connect with the songs again. But then when I go live, I just feel like a show man with the big band.

8:45 Speaker 1: Oh that's cool, that's excellent. Yeah, but you're still doing some Are you still doing some solo acoustic gigs?

8:52 Speaker 2: Yeah, more so with Eddie.

8:54 Speaker 3: So Eddie's like me main guitarists, and me and him kind of like do a few duet gigs where we just got with our acoustics. So there's a local artist called Lewis Betty and he's actually moved out to Canada, Okay, and he's done some he's done some big gigs over Lake, Canada and North America and stuff, and we got up support him in Liverpool recently and we've just done being Eddie with the two guitars.

9:25 Speaker 2: I think it's like it's a good opening to a gig and we loved it.

9:30 Speaker 1: It was yeah, yeah, excellent, excellent. I read something too about did you have you been performing or did you perform recently at a sports event?

9:42 Speaker 2: Yeah.

9:42 Speaker 3: So when Liverpool Football Club we won the league in May. Yeah, I want to say, it's what May and to day we were going to win the league. Well we we allssumed we were going to win it. The new loads of the fans going to lie in the streets before the game, so like encordage the players as they were coming in.

10:06 Speaker 1: Oh interesting, so the club.

10:08 Speaker 3: Yeah, the club flds' be a good ideas put like a lot of music and as the coach was coming in, the team coach. Yeah, so luckily they picked me and there must have been.

10:20 Speaker 2: Ten, fifteen, twenty zero people.

10:22 Speaker 3: Oh wow, so we're all setting off flairs and yeah, all kinds of it was madness.

10:29 Speaker 1: Yeah, see that was surreal. And then so you performed there with the band.

10:35 Speaker 2: No, that was just on me only the guitar.

10:36 Speaker 1: Oh my god, really in front of all those people? Oh what what was that like? Was that? I would think that would be a little bit scary. Well, I mean, you know, in a good way, but I mean, was it or how did you feel doing that?

10:50 Speaker 3: I wouldn't say scary, It was the sound system. I knew the sound system weren't going to be big enough. Oh, so it was like it was like anxiety, anxiousness of that, But the actual singing of the songs all that, I've done it.

11:04 Speaker 2: Every week, so that didn't really phase me.

11:07 Speaker 3: Sure, But what kind of ended up happening is I'll start singing one of the Liverpool songs and then the first few hundred thousand people start singing it, and then I could name myself and then the rest.

11:22 Speaker 2: Of the street will take over. Oh wow, like a wave.

11:26 Speaker 1: Yeah that sounds challenging.

11:30 Speaker 3: Yeah, but it was like I want to kind of relaxed and thought, well, that's the way it is. I just stopped a few times just watching them. I'm getting to do that.

11:42 Speaker 1: Oh wow, is there a video of that online on YouTube or anything. I'm curious to see that.

11:47 Speaker 3: I think there's a small video on we TikTok, but I've not shared a loft from And I said this to our manager recently. I was like, I've got all this Liverpool footage and I've never used it.

12:00 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's a yeah, I'm very very curious just to see that. Actually, that sounds like such a unique experience. Another thing I love.

12:10 Speaker 2: Look, I'll send you someone here. What's up?

12:13 Speaker 1: I'm sorry, what did you say?

12:15 Speaker 2: I'll have a look on my phone. I'll send you someone what's up?

12:17 Speaker 1: Oh perfect? Yeah, awesome. I would love that. Yeah, i'd love to see that. I'd love to see that. Another thing I read too that I wanted to ask you about. So, going back to piece in your sound for a moment, is this true? It's up over one hundred thousand streams.

12:31 Speaker 2: No, it's all about fifteen thousands.

12:34 Speaker 1: Oh, fifteen thousand. Okay, No, that's still pretty good. It's still yes, yeah, No, that's fantastic. Yeah, that's great. That song. I would imagine that goes over well live right.

12:46 Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, it's we play it on the Friday Saturday night and local bars and stuff.

12:52 Speaker 2: Yeah, and it goes down well. So it's a very clatchy, it's got upbeat feel.

12:59 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah, it's good. Yeah. No, I would imagine that's a lot of fun live. Now, what's kind of the so we talk obviously the newest single, and then do you have another one on the way or what's what's kind of your future trajectory at this point?

13:13 Speaker 3: So, yeah, so we're in a little bit of a good position at the minute. We've got a couple of big promoters kind of negotiating with us a bit.

13:25 Speaker 2: That's the right team.

13:26 Speaker 1: Oh good.

13:27 Speaker 3: So we've got one gig coming up on the fifth of December and that's with like a big promoter in the UK called This Feeling, So that's kind of like a trial and hopefully we do well on that gig and then that opens a big door with them. But also talking to I Love Live, which are massive and Liverpool okay, and we're looking at doing stuff with them next year. So we're just kind of putting an action plan together.

14:00 Speaker 1: Yeah.

14:01 Speaker 3: So we're in the studio in January. We're sort about doing three songs in like a couple of days, and then that kind of sets us up for like most of the year because then you've released one, say February, one early summer, one late summer, and like that kind of sets you up for the year.

14:25 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Do you have plans to put these into an EP or an album or or just doing singles for now?

14:33 Speaker 2: Again, we're sort of debating it.

14:35 Speaker 3: Yeah, So there's a bit of a toss up between do you just release singles or do you release an EP.

14:45 Speaker 2: And you can kind of do it both.

14:46 Speaker 3: So we've put two singles out, so we could put a third single out and then when you do the fourth you release that as an EP with.

14:55 Speaker 2: The four songs.

14:56 Speaker 1: Yeah.

14:57 Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm trying to get the best of both. But it's a with this ghost at a minute.

15:02 Speaker 1: There's there's so many different ways to do it. I mean, that's that's one of the interesting challenges. You know, when I was growing up, I might have said this last time we talked, but when I was growing up, it was pretty pretty straightforward. You know, first single goes to radio four to six weeks before the album, and then the album comes out, and then if all goes well, you know, you do the second single and go from there. But now today, I mean, there's so many different ways to do it. And yeah, it seems like a lot of the guests that we've had recently their strategy is do a series of singles that do eventually coalesce into an EP or an album.

15:32 Speaker 1: But yeah, but there's no there's no shortage of different strategies you can use.

15:37 Speaker 3: Well, I think I think that's what most people try and do, always keep releasing singles.

15:41 Speaker 2: Hope and one of them kind of blows up a bit.

15:44 Speaker 3: Yeah yeah, and then from nothing might get some sort of offer to go and record a full album something along them lines.

15:53 Speaker 1: Right right, yeah, absolutely, yeah, so many ways to do it. Well, Jamie, it's it's wonderful to talk to you this morning. Or I don't know what time it is there, it's probably is it afternoon there.

16:03 Speaker 2: Three o'clock in the afternoon, three o'clock.

16:05 Speaker 1: In the afternoon, So wonderful, wonderful to talk to you this afternoon. It's great to have you back, and you know we'll do it again when when the next singles out. We'd love to have you back. I love what you're doing, and in a moment we'll finish the conversation with a peace in your sound. For those who who did not hear our previous conversation, though, can you because I part of this is just selfishly I want to hear it again because I love this song so much, as you know from the last time we talked, absolutely adore this song.

16:31 Speaker 1: But what is this about again? For newer listeners who might not know.

16:35 Speaker 3: Well, fairly, thank you very much because I massively appreciate peoplet your self support on the music for us because oh, of course, if people don't, we might as well just stay in the plattice room, right, So we do appreciate it. Yeah, the song itself is kind of explanatory to my life because it's very loud and chayota.

17:00 Speaker 2: But the more thoughts about it, I was.

17:01 Speaker 3: Like, everyone's so busy, Like there's so much going on in the world. I don't know whether it's always been like this or whether it's modern times, but.

17:09 Speaker 2: It just seems crazy, so.

17:12 Speaker 3: Loud, and once I kind of just accepted it and thought, you know what, I'm very lucky. I've got amazing wife, two beautiful kids. I'm a full time singer. Like that's like the dream I'm like, once A kind of accepted that, I'm I've got piece in the sound. The song just kind of came from that. It's like, fine piece in your sound and you love life.

17:39 Speaker 1: Yeah.

17:40 Speaker 3: Absolutely, And obviously if you hear in some of the lyrics, I kind of devoted a bit to me wife because it's like sort of makes it a bit love related.

17:49 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's more just about like find your piece in your sound.

17:54 Speaker 1: Yeah. Absolutely, No, I think that's uh, I think that's pretty relatable. A lot of us have chaotic lives, that's for sure. That's for sure. So we're gonna we're gonna hit that track in a moment. We'll let you go. But Jamie Higgs again, thank you so much for joining us. I look forward to the next single and and and talking to you again and keep up the great work. We're we're really big fans over here, so so we.

18:14 Speaker 2: Thank you very much.

18:15 Speaker 3: Absolutely, thank you to everyone listening as well, really appreciate it.

18:19 Speaker 1: Absolutely. All right, we'll let you go. Jamie Higgs, thank you so much, and we'll we'll talk to you soon. Take care, gee, thank you, all right, bye bye. All right, that is the great Jamie Higgs. And without further ado, we're going to hit this track. I love this so much. Uh, this is this piece in your sound. Bye Jamie Higgs.