William Matheny (musician)

William Matheny (also known as Billy Matheny) is an American singer-songwriter from Morgantown, West Virginia. Matheny was also a multi-instrumentalist for Southeast Engine and is currently a keyboardist and guitarist for The Paranoid Style. His musical style has been compared to the likes of Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, Marshall Crenshaw, and The Modern Lovers’ Jonathan Richman.[1]

William Matheny
Also known asBilly Matheny
Born (1984-08-10) August 10, 1984
Mannington, West Virginia
OriginMorgantown, West Virginia
GenresRock music
Pop music
Rock 'n roll
Contemporary pop
Traditional pop
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter
Instrument(s)voice, guitar, keyboard
Years active2004–present
LabelsBar/None Records, Misra Records, Battle Worldwide Recordings
Websitewilliammatheny.com

Early life

Born in 1984 in Mannington, West Virginia, he is the grandson of Mansfield Matheny, lead singer for The Rhythm Rascals.[2] His great-grandfather was a gospel singer and his father was a bluegrass guitarist. Matheny claims to have been performing with bands as a guitarist since the age of nine. He became the drummer of Cheap Truckers’ Speed[3] as a teenager, eventually moving to Morgantown and becoming a musician-for-hire.

Musical career

In 2008, Matheny joined The Joe Prichard Band, the front man was Joe Prichard of the band called The Recipe, Matheny would play electric guitar and banjo. Matheny then joined the band Southeast Engine as a pianist and organ player.[4] He remained with the band until it went on "indefinite hiatus" at the end of 2012. Since that time, Matheny has continued to serve as a musician for The Paranoid Style (featuring Timothy Bracy of The Mendoza Line and Slow Dazzle) and Todd Burge,[2] among others. He and his band have been writing and recording the album that would eventually become Strange Constellations since 2013.[4] Matheny has appeared on the West Virginia Public Broadcasting program Mountain Stage a total of four times to date, both as a solo artist and as a member of a band.[2]

Current live band members[4]
  • Adam Meisterhans—guitar
  • J. Tom Hnatow—guitar
  • Bud Carroll—guitar
  • Jeremy Batten—keyboard
  • Ian Thornton—bass
  • John R. Miller—bass
  • Rod Elkins—drums
  • Sean Hallock—drums
  • Clint Sutton—drums

Discography

As Billy Matheny
  • Billy Matheny (self-released, 2004)[5]
  • Born of Frustration (self-released, 2006) – sometimes credited to "Billy Matheny & The Frustrations"[3][6]

With Southeast Engine
  • Canary (Misra Records, 2011)[7]
  • Canaanville (Misra Records, 2012)[8][9]

With The Paranoid style
  • The Power of Our Proven System (Misra Records, 2013)[10]
  • The Purposes of Music in General (Misra Records, 2013)[11]
  • Rock & Roll Just Can't Recall (Battle Worldwide Recordings, 2015)[11]
  • Rolling Disclosure (Bar/None Records, 2016)[12]
  • Underworld U.S.A. (Bar/None Records, 2017)[13]

As William Matheny
  • Blood Moon Singer EP (self-released, 2016)[4]
  • Strange Constellations (Misra Records, 2017)[14]
  • Moon Over Kenova (Misra Records, 2018)[15]
  • Flashes & Cables/Christian Name 7" (Misra Records, 2018)[16]

References
  1. "Left of the Dial: Morgantown musician's songs of observation". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  2. Thomas, Joni Deutsch, Nathan. "Front and Center with Morgantown's William Matheny". Retrieved December 24, 2016.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. Slisz, Carin. "Cheap Truckers' Speed reunites after four years". The Daily Athenaeum. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  4. "The Sideman Steps Out". Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  5. "Billy Matheny – Billy Matheny | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  6. "Born of Frustration – Billy Matheny | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  7. "Canary – Southeast Engine | Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  8. "New "Canaanville" EP & T-Shirt Album | Southeast Engine". southeastengine.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  9. "Southeast Engine – "Canaanville"". Misra Records. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  10. Christgau, Robert (March 27, 2015). "Robert Christgau: Expert Witness – Cuepoint". Medium. Archived from the original on November 5, 2018. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  11. "The Paranoid Style | Biography & History | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  12. "Album Credits for Rolling Disclosure". paranoidstyle.tumblr.com. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  13. "An Interview with the Paranoid Style's Elizabeth Nelson | The Weeklings". theweeklings.com.
  14. "LISTEN: William Matheny, 'Blood Moon Singer'". The Bluegrass Situation. November 18, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  15. Frahm, Jonathan (March 1, 2018). "William Matheny Sees 'Strange Constellations' in His New Track, "Moon Over Kenova" (premiere), PopMatters".
  16. "William Matheny Covers Centro-matic's "Flashes And Cables" " American Songwriter". American Songwriter. August 29, 2018. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
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