MATT BROUWER: Unlearning

Matt Brouwer

Unlearning

© 2005 Administered by: Made Music (714797003419)

CD IN STOCK. ORDER NOW. Will ship immediately.

SPECIAL: 10% discount if you buy more than one copy of it today!

Folk/Rock Contemporary/Gospel

tracks

1 A Simple Plan
2 Here I Am Again
3 Surrender
4 Unlearning
5 Home
6 Unfamiliar
7 If You Stay
8 I Shall Believe
9 You Are
10 Why Can't We Be Honest
11 With Me And You
12 Redemption Hymn
13 Prayer

notes

CCM Europe's Review of Matt Brouwer's "Unlearning"
"Absolutely perfect! "Unlearning" is a mature and sensitive project with a personal 'indie' feel that draws listeners into the lyrics. The music on this disc gets better and deeper with every listen. It can be felt that the distance from Nashville and the anchorage in the ministries of the church have given Matt Brouwer an artistic freedom and intellectual depth. Fans of Jars of Clay and alt-country/folk-rock music might find access to this album better than fans of slick pop. "
-Monica Seidler

matt brouwer
bio
Unlearning: To discard something previously learnt, like an old habit. (Webster's Dictionary)
The need to unlearn would seem to imply that there is something one knows that is wrong and must be undone and then relearned correctly. That is the crossroads Matt Brouwer found himself at in the year 2002. On his new CD, aptly titled Unlearning, Brouwer lays his soul bare, revealing a disarming honesty in themes ranging from loneliness, the loss of a Father, the search for home, consumerism, confession, and the hope and power of surrender.
Despite his introduction to the music world in May 2001, with his award-winning and critically acclaimed debut CD, Imagerical, Brouwer found himself feeling lost and confused in an ever expanding industry of corporate music. With constant attention being put on record sales and bankability as a "performer" the lines of art, success, and commerce started to get very blurry in Brouwer's own mind. In an effort to regain clarity he took an unusual path that led him to a church in Houston, TX. It was here Brouwer discovered his greatest joy in being a part of a relational, grassroots community.
Matthew (Paul) Brouwer grew up in the eastern Canadian town of Truro, Nova Scotia, he is the sixth of seven kids born and raised on a dairy farm. When he was three years old, his father was killed in a car accident, leaving the family to run the farm. "My family has been a huge spiritual influence in my life," says Brouwer. "I've seen firsthand how suffering and brokenness can unite people to lean on God for strength."
In college Matt began to take music more seriously and he started a band with a few friends there. "We knew there were spiritual depths that we had not experienced and playing music was this amazing tool that unlocked some places in my heart and hinted at a deeper reality," he remembers, "We got together because we had a need to ask questions. We were not skilled musicians, just willing to do whatever it took to be together."
Eventually, what came as a result of that experience was the CD Imagerical, which garnered national attention, received two Vibe Awards (Canadian People's Choice Award), was nominated for a Juno Award for best gospel album and produced two top 10 CCM radio singles. But as soon as Brouwer left college and began to travel the life of a musician in support of the CD, the less relevant it all seemed to be apart from a local community.
Says Brouwer, "To me a true artist is someone, who at the very least, has spent time in the trenches. Making an effort to serve and get their hands dirty. The process is a lot more real and painful than the illusion of being a celebrity, but in the end it's what separates great artistry from the disposableness of where music is right now. That is a journey that I feel drawn to. I think that who a person is speaks so much more than anything that they do or don't do. To become a person of substance we all need to be honest and face our demons while living life. Somewhere in that process I hope to find something worthwhile to say in my music."
Currently Matt and his band continue to walk the tedious line between traveling musician and local member in their home community. Given the depth of content that appears on his latest offering, Unlearning, lets hope Matt Brouwer and many more recording artists like him will continue to search for truth and meaning above climbing the ladder of fame.

reviews

Please log in to review this album.

  • Best I have heard in a long time.
    author: Shelli

    Matt's lyrics and musical artistry minister to listeners on several layers. Honest and unmasked, this CD needs a Dove award.

  • author: Ray

    The song "I Shall Believe" on Matt's Unlearning Album, a cover written by Sheryl Crow, is currently tops (4/10/06) on the 89.3 KSBJ Houston, Texas Christian radio station playlist and has been heavily played for an amazing 25 weeks now. Matt ministers from the heart with every song on this album.

  • thought provoking and real
    author: Jim

    I liked the CD so much that I e-mailed Matt to get chords and such. He emailed back! The words are deep, the tunes make you want to listen. The message is there for the taking. This music needs to be shared.

  • "A 'back-to-basics'' musical approach best serves Matt Brouwer's honest confessi
    author: Jacie A. Chapman

    "Matt Brouwer – UNLEARNING review" The new Matt Brouwer record Unlearning introduces a Matt Brouwer with new direction, musically and lyrically. Gone are the heavily produced tracks and the more pop/rock-driven melodies. In their place is Brouwer’s band, comprised of only the essential pieces, that opens a door to simplicity, the best vehicle for the lyrics that Brouwer crafted. Songs explore how life’s concerns intersect with God’s words so that one can express faith in the most honest and real way possible. Some of Unlearning’s most poignant moments come in songs that concern his family. Brouwer pours his love and belief for a family member into the plaintive, striking “Surrender”: “It’s deep inside where you regress, you’re incomplete and fatherless, there’s so much anchored bitterness that you hold, let it go.” The song “Unfamiliar” speaks to Brouwer’s father, who died when he was 3-years-old, and almost sounds as if Brouwer’s still working through the effect of his death so many years later. Another highlight, Brouwer’s version of Sheryl Crow’s “I Shall Believe” is beautiful, simple and convincing, giving new life to the word believe. Joined by Kendall Payne, Brouwer reaches moments of feeling that make him sound much like Jars of Clay frontman Dan Haseltine. The result of Brouwer’s change in both surroundings and perspective on life, Unlearning is about stepping back and looking again at the rules of the game, about rethinking where efforts should be directed. There is a more somber feel to Unlearning but it’s a passion refocused, an important release. By Jackie A. Chapman

  • "Matt brouwer's powerfully unforced vocals soar on his sophomore CD."
    author: Lindsay Whitfield (soul shine magazine)

    Matt Brouwer Album Title: Unlearning Release Date: 2005 Rating: ***1/2 Genre: Folk/Rock The youth of Canada need to experience worship in a new way. Matt Brouwer harvests his guitar and air-tight harmonies with a truth woven throughout the album; we can “unlearn” damaging behavior if we get real with God and in turn stay true to our ultimate purpose. One of the best tracks is one Brouwer wrote himself, “Surrender”. Melodic drums from John Stanley and powerfully unforced vocals from Brouwer fuse together for the ultimate impact. Writer: Lindsay Whitfield (editor of Soulshine Magazine)

email

Please log in to email this artist.