07 January Is For Videos: Mark Mathis – Two Days To Live

Last year I was on tour all over the eastern U.S. and found myself in Charlotte, NC. While there, I was given a CD by the father of a local solo artist named Mark Mathis. When I am given a disc, I reluctantly give it a listen because usually (99 out of 100 times) I don’t like it. The music is more than likely subpar, uninteresting, or just not my style. This time was different. I popped Mathis’ “We Both Was Young” CD in the car and was greeted with an intentionally lo-fi banjo tune wrought with unconventional percussion called “Sharecropper Takes A Colored Wife.” It was beautiful, quirky, relaxed, ambitious, political, and inspiring. I thought that maybe this was the best track on the disc. It’s not uncommon to find a really good song in midst of a bunch of groaners, so I kept listening, half expecting to find the next track would let me down. If it was blah, then I could toss this disc on top of the ever-growing pile I’ve collected and move on. But track 2 was good, really good. Track 3, good too. Tracks 4, 5, 6 and so on… good. The whole disc was full of great music. Here was the first disc I found in a long time that I loved every track. I was blown away. So of course, the next time I had internet access I had to look him up. Who is this guy with a down-to-earth and confident tone that both gives you hope and breaks your heart? I was happy to see that he has several CD’s out. So I bought them. I was not let down with these either. In my mind, Mark Mathis is the voice of the new church. He speaks the truth without mincing words. He’s direct, but not bible-bashing. He’s down home, but not backwater. Young, but wise for his age. Indie, but high quality. So refreshing… The video for today is him performing his song “Two Days To Live” live on what appears to be a local Christian TV show. It’s the only YouTube video I could find of him online. SUPPORT GREAT INDEPENDENT MUSIC:
1. Buy his discs/tracks on iTunes or from his website.
2. Add him as a friend on MySpace too.
3. Tell a friend. Just send them to this blog post by clicking here.