Matt Pond PA was a New York-based band formed in Philadelphia by singer-songwriter Matt Pond. It released twelve LPs and numerous EPs between 1998 and 2017. Throughout the years Pond enlisted a rotating cast of collaborators for recording and touring, including cellists Jim Hostetter and Eve Miller, violinist Rosie McNamara-Jones, drummers Mike Kennedy and Dan Crowell, bassists Matt Raisch and Josh Kramer, and guitarists Jim Kehoe and Brian Pearl. Chris Hansen, producer and guitarist, has been a core member of the group since 2007. Cellist Shawn Alpay, who performs individually as Completions, is currently recording and touring as a member of the band. Matt Pond announced on October 30th, 2017 on his website and social media accounts that he would be retiring the Matt Pond PA moniker, but would continue making music. The band released a final EP, "More Winter Lives", on November 21st, 2017, and played their final show on December 16th, 2017.
Members
Matt Pond – vocals, guitar
Chris Hansen – guitar, vocals
Shawn Alpay – cello
History
Early history (1998 - 2002)
Debuting in 1998 with Deer Apartments, the band quickly gained momentum through claiming top honors in an unsigned bands competition sponsored by CDNOW. Their sophomore album, Measure, was released in 2000 and a follow-up EP I Thought You Were Sleeping was issued the following year. The band first release on Polyvinyl, The Green Fury, was released in the spring of 2002 and The Nature of Maps followed soon after.
''Emblems, Several Arrows Later, Last Light,'' ''The Freeep,'' and ''The Threeep'' (2004 - 2009)
Pond relocated to Brooklyn in 2003 and recorded the band’s breakthrough album, Emblems, which was released on Altitude in 2004. In 2005 the band issued the seasonal EP, Winter Songs, which gained a larger following when Starbucks used the song "Snow Day" in a television commercial. Several months later released their 6th full-length LP entitled Several Arrows Later. 2007 saw the launch of If You Want Blood and Last Light. In 2008 the band released a free EP entitled The Freeep which was later sold under the name Auri Sacra Fames in 2009. An EP called The Threeep was also released in 2009.
''The Dark Leaves, The Lives Inside the Lines in Your Hand,'' and ''The State of Gold'' (2010 - 2015)
Holing up in a cabin in Upstate New York, Pond recorded The Dark Leaves with producer Chris Hansen and several other guest musicians in 2010. In 2011, Matt Pond PA released his EP titled Spring Fools, which included three songs. One of the songs, "Love to Get Used", was featured later on in the Vince Vaughn movie Delivery Man in 2013. 2013 saw the brief removal of “PA” from the band name and the release of The Lives Inside the Lines in Your Hand. The band recorded and released 2015’s The State of Gold while simultaneously playing anniversary tours for both Emblems and Several Arrows Later.
''Winter Lives'', ''Still Summer'', and retirement of name (2016 - 2017)
Matt Pond launched 131 Records in the summer of 2016 from a desire to retain complete control over his musical process. He uses Patreon, a platform that allows fans to directly interact and contribute to the artist, to fund the endeavor. On November 11, 2016, Matt Pond PA released their eleventh album, Winter Lives. Keeping with the seasonal theme, Still Summer followed on August 11, 2017. On October 30, 2017, Matt Pond announced via his website and social media accounts, "...It is time to say goodbye to the oddly named Matt Pond PA. We’ll soon release a reprising holiday EP. And these shows in December will be the last we play under that honorific. Whatever happens next, I will continue to make music. We’re focusing the crux of our upcoming efforts here. Just without my name on all the baloney. It’s time for a different brand of baloney..." The band released their final EP, "More Winter Lives", on November 21, 2017, and played their final show on December 16, 2017 in Kingston, New York.
