Matt Wilson and his Orchestra

Matt Wilson is a singer songwriter from Minneapolis who rose to minor prominence with his group Trip Shakespeare in the late 80’s and early 90’s. His orchestra is comprised of an unusual combination of instruments and human characters. The other members of the group include Phala Tracy on harp, Quillan Roe on banjo, and Jacques Wait on electric bass. Matt plays guitar and piano, and blows occasionally on harmonica.

Matt gathered these musicians in late 2018 with the intention of forming a group with gentle-sounding instrumentation that would compliment his soft and scratchy voice. The idea was that the band would play songs from Matt’s canon as well as a few covers that Matt deemed the greatest songs he knew. But sound of the group, their vocal blend and the musical sense they made together, seemed to demand new material, new songs that this group could own. Matt called this talented trio his orchestra and the name stuck.

The orchestra, with its odd instrumentation, has a grassy sound that’s easy to fall into. Most striking to both the eye and ear is the sheer musicality of harpist Phala Tracy. An inventive collaborator, her energy and ideas drive the group’s arrangements. The band’s sound is underpinned by the gentle and compelling banjo groove of Quillan Roe who is best known for his work with the Roe Family Singers of Minneapolis. The sunshine tones of harp and banjo are rolled out on a black road of electric bass provided by Minneapolis guitar ace Jacques Wait.