Independent (label)
15 June 2017 (released)
13 June 2017
Love letters to the Big City have chimed out of Greenwich Village cellars and Broadway stages ever since weary immigrants began showing up on its shores to encounter the larger than life buildings and personalities of New York. The loungey, piano bar style ballads will always be most at home in the Big Apple. Even when not directly referencing the city in the songs, New York oozes from every theatrical proclamation of love as if the lovers are having a threesome with it. Romance seems ten times larger in the City. Like Paris before it, New York is the muse of muses. Always desired yet never possessed.
Young Matteo Scher has the twinkle of city lights in his eyes. The Twenty-year-old phenom sings with the unencumbered passion of a young man feeling the true meaning of freedom for the first time yet plays like a seasoned vet, ebbing and flowing to keep his audience hanging on his every note. His wise beyond his years professionalism comes from gigging nightly around town as well as being under the tutelage of one Alicia Keys. His debut EP, New York and Me is a brief glimpse into the talent of this young crooner.
The opener and lead single, 'New York and Me' tells the tale of a girl making her break from the city. Earnestly pounded piano, string section swoops and Scher's silky voice lead this impassioned, wistful piece. This is Scher's quintessential tune. The title track eases into even smoother territory with an ambling John Legend style ballad. 'Forget' again looks back at departed love, this time with acceptance and an easy drum shuffle. Tasteful guitar leads duet with Scher's light harmonized oohs. The closer 'Painkiller' begins with a 'past last call' sombre mood before the band punches in for this snappy, groovy number that harkens to certain '70s Elton John classics.
On New York and Me, Matteo Scher is by no means reinventing the wheel. However, the young pianist's vitality shines through in a style that is dominated by aged acquiescence. Scher still has chips in the game and his admiring view of New York City reinvigorates the genre for a new generation.
