HOME

WHAT IS THE CITY? //
Have you ever loved a song so much that every time you hear it, you can’t help but stop and listen, and move your head to the beat – because the lyrics hit you just right, and the music really defines this moment you now find yourself living in? We have. To us, music and songwriting is like breath and life. In many ways, it defines us. It motivates us. We write music because we’re songwriters. Life any other way would be unnatural. And so comes our story…

From the beginning, it was obvious that Jay Mathes and Gary Stanton would one day collaborate. The first meeting of the two writers came after a straight-forward, cold-call, no-previous-relationship invitation from Mathes for Stanton to come over one night, to swap songs and critique each other’s work.

“It was the first time in my life,” Mathes says, “that I ever met someone else who was as passionate about songwriting as I was. It changed my worldview.” But nothing really came of it – for the time being. The two continued to write on their own and kept tabs on each other’s progressing projects.

But in late 2005, Stanton found himself in need of a guitarist for his current outfit. “Mathes was a logical fit,” Stanton says, “He’s a well-rounded guitarist, vocalist, and like-minded songwriter.” Since then, the two have shared the stage all over the Midwest – playing notable shows at Hard Rock Cafe, Loyola University, Double Door, Cubby Bear, and Naperville’s Ribfest, performing alongside some of the nation’s top touring bands, including: Sister Hazel, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Local H, Lucky Boys Confusion, and Last Fast Action.

A product of the team’s collaboration, a song called “More Than Alive”, has recently been featured on Chicago’s WXRT and Q101 radio stations – two of Chicago’s largest rock stations. Of late, The City finds itself in “constant writing mode,” touring the country and playing shows for growing pockets of fans, arranging material for shows, eating, sleeping, and doing everything else that two normal people do.

So you might still be wondering: why “The City”? For anyone who has been a part of Chicago life, you’ll understand. There’s just something about Chicago – the neighborhoods, the clubs, the people – that’s different from the other metro areas, like Atlanta, L.A., or New York. “There’s a mystery here – something you can’t put your finger on, but you know it affects you.” Stanton continues, “It’s the same with music – the mystery, that is. For us, ‘The City’ captures the unanswered influences of both.”

HOME WHAT IS THE CITY? // Have you ever loved a song so much that every time you hear it, you can’t help but stop and listen, and move your head to the beat – because the lyrics hit you just right, and the music really defines this moment you now find yourself living in? We have. To us, music and songwriting is like breath and life. In many ways, it defines us. It motivates us. We write music because we’re songwriters. Life any other way would be unnatural. And so comes our story… From the beginning, it was obvious that Jay Mathes and Gary Stanton would one day collaborate. The first meeting of the two writers came after a straight-forward, cold-call, no-previous-relationship invitation from Mathes for Stanton to come over one night, to swap songs and critique each other’s work. “It was the first time in my life,” Mathes says, “that I ever met someone else who was as passionate about songwriting as I was. It changed my worldview.” But nothing really came of it – for the time being. The two continued to write on their own and kept tabs on each other’s progressing projects. But in late 2005, Stanton found himself in need of a guitarist for his current outfit. “Mathes was a logical fit,” Stanton says, “He’s a well-rounded guitarist, vocalist, and like-minded songwriter.” Since then, the two have shared the stage all over the Midwest – playing notable shows at Hard Rock Cafe, Loyola University, Double Door, Cubby Bear, and Naperville’s Ribfest, performing alongside some of the nation’s top touring bands, including: Sister Hazel, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Local H, Lucky Boys Confusion, and Last Fast Action. A product of the team’s collaboration, a song called “More Than Alive”, has recently been featured on Chicago’s WXRT and Q101 radio stations – two of Chicago’s largest rock stations. Of late, The City finds itself in “constant writing mode,” touring the country and playing shows for growing pockets of fans, arranging material for shows, eating, sleeping, and doing everything else that two normal people do. So you might still be wondering: why “The City”? For anyone who has been a part of Chicago life, you’ll understand. There’s just something about Chicago – the neighborhoods, the clubs, the people – that’s different from the other metro areas, like Atlanta, L.A., or New York. “There’s a mystery here – something you can’t put your finger on, but you know it affects you.” Stanton continues, “It’s the same with music – the mystery, that is. For us, ‘The City’ captures the unanswered influences of both.”