[Musicians] Matt Thiessen

[Wolf.17]

 

Thiessen founded Relient K in 1998, with guitarist Matt Hoopes, and bassist Brian Pittman,^[1] and recorded the demo All Work & No Play the same year. The recording attracted the interest of Toby McKeehan who signed the band to his label Gotee Records. Between the years 2000 and 2003, Gotee released three full-length albums, one Christmas album, and four EPs with Relient K. In 2004, their fourth album Mmhmm was released on both Capitol Records and Gotee, and peaked at number fifteen on the Billboard 200.^[2] After recording another EP in 2005, Mmhmm and Two Lefts Don't Make a Right...but Three Do, their 2003 album, were certified gold, followed by their 2001 album The Anatomy of the Tongue in Cheek in 2006.^[3] In 2007, Gotee, Capitol, and EMI released Relient K's fifth studio album, Five Score and Seven Years Ago, which peaked at number six on the Billboard 200.^[2] After the release of the double EP The Bird and the Bee Sides in 2008, the band signed with Gotee's Mono Vs. Stereo imprint, on which they released their sixth studio album, Forget and Not Slow Down, again reaching the top twenty of the Billboard 200.^[2] Thiessen and the other members of Relient K have taken up A&R positions for the label as part of the record deal.^[4]

Thiessen has been the lead vocalist, frontman, guitarist, primary songwriter, and, along with guitarist/backing vocalist Matt Hoopes, the only member who has been in the band for its entire history. Because of this position of musical leader, he maintains the most creative and artistic control of the band members.^[5] He has also served as co-producer on several occasions as well. As the band matured musically, Thiessen started being credited with piano in most releases, beginning with The Anatomy of the Tongue in Cheek in 2001. Since the release of Mmhmm in 2004, his piano playing started becoming more prominent, and he began including a piano onstage as well.^[6]

Solo projects and collaborations

In addition to being in Relient K, Thiessen plays in his own solo piano project called Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes. Prior to 2018, the project had released a total of five songs on various samplers and compilation albums from Gotee and Mono Vs. Stereo, and several songs written for the project have been re-recorded on Relient K releases. In 2010, after the release and supporting tour of Forget and Not Slow Down, Thiessen announced that he would begin work on a full-length solo album.^[7] Although he had previously expressed interest in recording a studio release, he had placed his priority on Relient K, and relegated his solo work to his free time.^[5]

In April 2018, Adam Young of Owl City announced that Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes would be joining them on tour later in the year.^[8] In June 2018, Thiessen announced that his debut album under Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes, Wind Up Bird, would release later that

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Thiessen