Interview With Black Sunshine’s Matt Reardon

TuneLab: You spent a lot of years as a professional freeskier, what made you decide to get into music?

Matt Reardon: I was always into music since my first memory….all the guys in the band are that way as well. We all come from musical families. I first got my official start in 98 when I went to Texas and recorded a 7 song EP, from there I got some good feedback. I did voice overs to pay for the production. Soon after Teton Gravity Research (a film company out of Jackson Hole Wyoming) had been down at a competition I was competing at in New Zealand. They were making a film called “Further” and needed a title track so when I got back to Europe where I was living at the time I went into a studio and cut the track. They dug it and that was officially how it all started. From there I started submitting songs to a bunch of different film companies, surf, moto, snowboard, ski, etc etc and also started getting voice jobs singing for video game soundtracks and other productions. Performing has always been the push and touring is the goal nonstop at this point. You get the same natural high from riding a big line in the mountains as you do performing in front of crowds. We all feed on it.

TL: Was it hard for those who knew your background to take you seriously as musician?

MR: You can fake a lot in the studios but people will know if you have chops or not. I know a few sports people who crush it and a lot who don’t. I look up to people like Jack Johnson who really took both crafts to the next level. A lot of people don’t realize he came from a surfing background. As far as taking me seriously I just do what I do and keep moving forward. I try not to worry about that stuff as long as we believe in what we are doing that’s what matters most. People sniff it out if it’s not the real deal.

TL: You’ve got a new band behind you for the new album, how did you hook up with Charles Lee and the rest of the guys?

MR: I have known Charles for a few years and met him initially when he was in John 5′s band Loser who was working with Bob Marlette. He was doing some pretty cool stuff out on the road and I knew he wanted to get on board for the long haul with Black Sunshine. Toast [Matt Young] and I have been playing shows for many years and have been really close friends for a very long time. If there is one guy I want on the road it is Toast! They do not come better! Serafini I met when I was living in Arizona road testing out material. He is super into mountain biking and mountains in general as are all the guys and I have absolute respect for his talents. It is never a dull moment on the road with Toast and Fini. Good times good people.

TL: How did you settle on the name Black Sunshine?

MR: Man that was a tough one for sure! I really was not into the band name Reardon at all which we ended up with in Europe by default and pushed really hard to change this. For me Black Sunshine has a lot of yin and yang to it. The music has a lot of light moments and very dark moments as the lyrical content deals with a lot of death which occurred over the years around me personally as well as some of the band members… and lets not kid ourselves we wanted to be on the shelf next to Black Sabbath! [laughs] And, yes White Zombie was an influence as it is one of my favorite songs… I’m a fan!

TL: You self-released ‘Free From Code’ in 2003 with your previous band Reardon. How would you describe the music on that record versus the new self-titled release?

MR: Just like any craft or sport you hope to grow year to year. With numerous life experiences in between I think I grew both lyrically and musically. I also had a chance to work with a few other songwriters which I always wanted to write with and change up the sound. I was listening to a lot of Foo Fighters and Audoslave as well as mellower bands. With this body of music definitely had a clear vision of the type of album we wanted to come out with and tour relentlessly for. ‘Free From Code’ was a fun album to make and perform but with this album I started to playing the electric guitar a lot more than the acoustic and was into a more raw organic approach to rock and roll. I would say this album has a lot more balls than the last one and the songwriting has developed.

TL: How did working with Bob Marlette influence the new songs?

MR: Bob knows music and how to shape songs. The two songs where he really dug in the most were “Once In My Life” and “Flying Sideways”. Bob brings a lot of musical wisdom to the table and his resume speaks for itself. We worked really well together and had an agreed vision which I think showed in the end result. He really took some songs that were sitting in a cool place and made them next level.

TL: The album drops in April, what are the bands plans in the weeks leading up to the release and the remainder of the year?

MR: Right now we have a few one off gigs for radio and I will do a two week run around the country with an acoustic to do some unplugged radio visits. We officially start touring mid March with a few of our favorite bands Smile Empty Soul and Soil and we are doing 3 weeks of rehearsals prior to hitting the road. We could not be more fired up to hit the road. We have all been working hard to get to this point and the road is what we all live for!

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Black Sunshine’s self-titled debut album will be available on April 13th. Dates for a tour with Smile Empty Soul and SOiL are listed on MySpace.