Matt Hires w/ Jason Castro & Caitlin Crosby

 

 

When you listen to Matt Hires, what comes across is the sound of an artist self-assured, authentic, and at ease with being completely and utterly himself. On his debut F-Stop/ Atlantic release, Take Us To The Start, the 23-year-old Florida native fuses the intimacy of the great singer/songwriters with indelible pop/rock hooks and propulsive rhythms. The result is a mesmerizing collection of songs that are immediately enchanting, while becoming more deeply rewarding with each listen

 

 With his warm, evocative vocals and distinctive charisma, Jason Castro has already earned bountiful acclaim and a fervent fan following. The Texas-based tunesmith – best known as the third runner-up on the 2008 season of Fox’s American Idol – is now hard at work on his hugely anticipated debut album, set for release on Atlantic Records later this year. Among Castro’s creative collaborators are Grammy Award winning producer John Fields (Lifehouse, Switchfoot, Soul Asylum) and such acclaimed songwriters as Kara DioGuardi (Kelly Clarkson, Jewel, Santana), Martin Terefe (Jason Mraz, KT Tunstall), Sacha Skarbek (James Blunt, Jason Mraz), Guy Chambers (Robbie Williams) and Jason Reeves (Colbie Caillat).

A multi-talented singer and guitarist, Jason was among the most popular and talented artists in American Idol history, entering the record books as the first contestant to play an instrument on the show. His performance of the Leonard Cohen-penned classic "Hallelujah" proved such an audience favorite that the late, great Jeff Buckley’s rendition of the song hit 1 on the iTunes chart the following week, selling an astonishing 178,000 digital singles. Jason scored a chart-topping single of his own a few weeks later with his interpretation of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow," which also hit 1 on iTunes after a show-stopping performance of the song on American Idol. Upon the season’s conclusion, Castro was among the stars of the hugely successful "American Idols LIVE! Tour 2008."