Matt Mays On World Cafe

Leave it to Matt Mays to infuse a daytime studio visit with the spirit of a super sweaty, late night at your favorite dive bar. Mays performs big rock songs from his latest album Once Upon a Hell of a Time featuring the sound of three simultaneous guitars and one heck of a growl. Mays credits Melissa Cross' "The Zen of Screaming" with saving his vocal life. Mays also delivers an acoustic performance of his song "Ola Volo," a song named for the inventive and intriguing artist who inspired the tune. It's a preview of what's to come on Mays' upcoming album, Twice Upon a Hell of a Time, which will re-imagine and strip down the songs from Once Upon a Hell of a Time.

Mays has spent nearly two decades on the road and still seems just as content to explore the cities he visits as a tourist as is he is to perform there. Mays explains how having synesthesia allows him experience sound as color and how that translates to seeing the notes he's playing during a performance. Plus Mays describes what it's like to surf on Canada's East Coast (Yes, you can do that and he's done it!)

Listen in the player.

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