Mattie Schell is at the forefront of Americana music's new crop of artists. An equally powerful singer and songwriter, Mattie deftly blends the lived-in honesty of roots music with the raw, emotional power of soul, creating a sound that has roots in tradition but is proudly and uniquely her own. A frequent performer with the Allman Betts Family Revival and a founding member of the beloved St. Louis-based group River Kittens, Mattie is poised to break out as one of the most dynamic new voices in the genre with the release of her debut solo album Everything Means Nothing.
The album was produced and recorded by guitar-slinger JD Simo at his House of Grease studio Nashville with Mattie singing ‘live on the floor’ alongside the band, capturing full-take tracking vocals in the process. It was mixed at Compass Sound Studio (historically known as Glaser Sound Studio - aka "Hillbilly Central" and the birthplace of Outlaw Country) and showcases Mattie’s powerful vocals and insightful songwriting.
The Riverfront Times (St. Louis) wrote that the new album "...highlights Schell’s chameleonic ability to channel a range of Americana styles into an assured tour through country crooners, funk-soul groovers, jazzy ballads and folk confessionals, all delivered with Schell’s powerful, plaintiff vocals."
The album's lead single "Coast to Coast" is just such a showcase for Mattie's powerful voice. With its Memphis soul groove, the song takes on the challenges of life on the road and the alienation that comes from being apart from your loved ones.
Mattie says: "My husband Nate wrote half of this one in the back of a tour bus while parked in that sad little patch of New Jersey right across the river from Manhattan that’s nothing but wrong turns and freeway interchanges they call the Meadowlands. It’s about being homesick on the road and realizing that being on a big gig for its own sake is a lonely and petty experience compared to being on a journey with your loved ones."
