Overview

Hello world! My name is Matthew Earl, and I'm a singer-songwriter here in the beautiful city of Durham, North Carolina.

I’ve been writing songs and performing music for what seems my whole life, from playing drums since I was 12, then moving on to playing and performing my own material for almost a decade in Nashville. I am very excited about my new batch of original material, and I can’t wait to share all my new stories with you. 

The material is ready, and the musicians are waiting -- this Plaid Dog campaign is the final step toward creating my first ever, professionally produced studio album.

This campaign is raising funds for my professionally recorded album with Bryan Fennelly in Boston, MA. Bryan is a Boston-based producer and engineer with experience working with both established and up-and-coming musicians. Together, Bryan and I are digging into my original material, writing arrangements, and reaching out to local musicians to bring the songs to life. 

We’ve been able to cover the costs of recording and producing one song, which is ready for you to check out right here on this page. This first song is called “Still Be Still,” and you can check it out below!

While I’ve been able to fund the recording process for "Still Be Still" on my own, to create an album of songs of this quality, studio costs add up quickly. With that said, this campaign can give us a unique opportunity to collaborate and make great art together. Your donation will cover the following costs of my project:

1. Pre-Production: This is where everything starts. Bryan and I will start crafting the arrangements for each song slated for the album. We’ll hold rehearsals to fine-tune the songs and arrangements and talk through new and exciting ideas for how to approach the recording process.

2. Recording: This is when we enter the studio and start capturing the music and where the songs become what you'll hear on this album. This campaign will play a huge role in making sure we have enough time to capture great performances for every member of the band.

3. Mixing & Mastering: Each track will get mixed to create the right balance between instruments, texture and color that make up a track. As a final step, the album will be mastered from beginning to end so that the listening experience is cohesive and carefully choreographed from start to finish.

And what will you get for your generosity and support? So many awesome things!

I am so appreciative and grateful for any support you can lend to this campaign. In exchange for your generosity, I've put together a really exciting group of gifts that are available exclusively through your participation in this campaign.

Check out some examples below and a full list to the right!

It's hard to express how much this project would elevate my career.

Music is awesome in its ability to have such a ripple effect on anything that it touches. I love when I hear someone say that one of my songs made them process something going on in their life or that it felt like I was telling their own story.

A project like this can forever change the way I look at my music. Up until now, my process of creating music has been a very private endeavor, renting a studio and doing everything independently. This will be the first time I let anyone into my world that can see, hear, and react to the way I do things live and in person. Now, I have that collective drive and a creative team to constantly push me in ways I couldn’t do alone. Hopefully, after the completion of this project, it will open up all kinds of new opportunities and adventure that I didn’t even think were possible.

I have never approached an album this way before. Creating something that so many people can be a part of is awesome. I am not making this album just for me, anymore. I have so many people believing in me that it is pushing me to create the best work I have ever done. The normal recording process can be a very cold, private process. With Plaid Dog, it is just the opposite. It is a collaborative effort in the best possible way.

If you're ready to contribute, just click the "Back This Project" button on the top right of this page! Every little bit counts, and I’m so grateful for all your support.

If you have folks in your network that would be interested in supporting me, please feel free to share this page with them.

Thank you so much for checking out my campaign page. I can't wait to share this music with you.