Bleeding Audio

The Matches broke up in 2009 due largely to tour exhaustion and an inability to make enough money to survive as a band in the digital age. Jump forward five years and the band is celebrating the 10 year anniversary of their first album, E. Von Dahl Killed the Locals, with a limited edition vinyl release and a single reunion show at Slim’s in San Francisco.

That “one show” sold out in seconds to fans across the globe (myself included, as I was living in Boston at the time). Florida and Australia are two other places represented that I remember.

That show became a mini (yet international!) tour, which led to the band releasing two new songs and playing two Bay Area shows in 2015, and touring again for their second album Decomposer in 2016.

Enter: Bleeding Audio

“Bleeding Audio is a feature length documentary about The Matches, a band from Oakland, their career, and how their experience parallels the digital age of the music industry. The film uses The Matches’ meteoric rise, surprising fall, and inevitable reunion to explore how artists navigate their careers in the digital era.”

When talks of a reunion “show” were in the works in 2014, independent filmmaker Chelsea Christer could already feel how big a story this was. She launched a Kickstarter for the documentary’s pre-production, and amazingly it was fully funded in the last few days of the campaign.

She then spent the next two years filming everything Matches. The recording of the new songs (“Crucial Comeback (Mary Claire)” and “Life of a Match“), every show, and interviews with the band, industry professionals, and peers of the Matches (Justin Pierre of Motion City Soundtrack and Tom Higgenson of the Plain White T’s for example).

Well, it is now time for the final stages of the film! A post-production Kickstarter was just launched on Wednesday, and unlike the first go-round, the project has already received over $10K in the first four days.

For fans of music and fans of the Matches, this is an important story, and the film is going to be huge. I’m stoked, you should be stoked, and you should definitely consider donating to the Kickstarter campaign.

For the next few days only, you can get a pair of these sweet Decomposer shades designed by artist and Matches fan Michelle Stewart (top right), and a discounted price on the complete merchandise package, which is what I’d recommend.

(Top left: me, bottom left: producer Ryon Lane, bottom right: director Chelsea Christer)

Celebratory tacos the night of the launch! Let’s do this!