Matt Guillory Matt Guillory was introduced to music at an early age. Although Matt was exposed to a variety of styles, he really grew up on classical and soul. While most students were playing Mozart for their piano recitals, Matt was playing Stevie Wonder. As Matt grew older, he started listening to rock and was forever changed.

Matt's technical side may stem from some of his guitar influences however, he prefers to remain focused on songwriting as opposed to simply technical flash. Some of his favorites include: Tal Bachman, SCC, and Nichole Nordeman.

Other Musicians Matt has played with:
•John West (Artension, Lynch Mob, Royal Hunt)
•Deen Castronovo (Bad English, Hardline, Journey)
•Barry Sparks (Michael Schenker, Uli Roth)
•Phil Mogg and Pete Way (UFO)
•Matt is also the keyboardist for the progressive rock
 band Dali's Dilemma

Thoughts on Mullmuzzler "Keep It To Yourself":

How I got involved:

"In the summer of '98, Mike Varney and Pete Mortecelli (Magna Carta) called me and explained that James was interested in doing a solo record with them.
They asked me if I would write some material for James to consider using. There was no guarantee that I would be involved with any part of this project unless he liked the tunes. The first demo I sent James contained two songs which eventually became "His Voice" and "Statued." A few weeks later, James called me up and said he liked the songs and my playing so much, that he also wanted to know if I was interested in playing on the whole record and if I had any more material I could send him. Shortly after that, I sent him a demo of what would become "Lace." That's how James and I started working together."

The Recording:

"This was exciting, but very scary at the same time. I had to record all of the keyboard parts in my living room on ADAT. I really wanted to record without the hassle of engineering the stuff. Luckily, I had the help of a good friend. When I was done recording, I fed-ex'd the tape up to Terry Brown in Canada. He called me a day later when he was compiling the music and said that I needed to RE-record ALL of the keyboards because I recorded them all in mono. I was given access to another ADAT and 2 days later, all the keyboard parts were re-recorded. Heh, that was crazy."

What I think about Mullmuzzler (Keep It To Yourself):

"I like it, but I think the mix could of been better. James and I were just starting to form a writing chemistry. I would say my favorite song is "His Voice." James' vocal delivery really kicked butt. Also, the opportunity to be involved in a project with Mike Mangini, Mike Keneally and Bryan Beller was pretty exciting."

Thoughts on Mullmuzzler 2:

How I got involved:

"James and I stayed in touch, and not too long after "Keep It To Yourself" was released, we started talking about doing another record. We were both really happy with the chemistry and vibe that we had on the first one, so we wanted to see if we could push the envelope even more. I didn't start writing until around December of 1999."

"Once I got some rough demos together, James and I hooked up in San Francisco and we collaborated on different melodic and arrangement ideas. We also discussed where everything should be in terms of sonics. Since we were able to get together this time, I think the songs have more depth and a natural-flow to them as a result."

The Recording:

"I was originally supposed to record my tracks at a studio near James' place in Canada, but due to a mean woman at the Toronto airport, customs refused to allow me into Canada. Two days later, James ended up flying down to where I live and I did my tracks at Robert Berry's studio. We had a great time, a lot of laughs, and a lot of caffine (not nessesarily in that order!)."

What I think about Mullmuzzler 2:

"I was going through a real emotional time in my life, so alot of the music that was written is basically a reflection of what I was going through and feeling during that period. James and I collaborated on the lyrics for "Believe" and I wrote the lyrics for "Falling" and "Tell Me" Overall, I think this record is more dynamic-in terms of music, and also the way it was mixed. From an emotional standpoint, I think Mullmuzzler 2 has alot more depth to it. James is doing things vocally that I've never heard him do before."

Check out Matt's website http://www.mattguillory.com
 
 
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