Matthew Dear

Matthew Dear’s 2003 full-length Ghostly debut, Leave Luck to Heaven, is a suite of sparse house laced with Dear’s deep, distinctive vocals, and includes the much-loved single “Dog Days” (voted one of Pitchfork’s Top 100 Songs of the Decade). The album was met with rapturous acclaim from both the dance-music establishment and the critical press, including a four-star review in Rolling Stone. Dear’s 2007 follow-up, Asa Breed, was a considerable departure from Heaven’s dance-floor excursions, incorporating the polyrhythms of Afrobeat, the irreverent pop sensibilities of Brian Eno, and the austere beauty of Krautrock. More rave reviews followed (Q and Mojo magazines), and Dear subsequently began touring with a live three-piece band, commanding the stage with a Bryan Ferry-like swagger and a gentleman’s grace. His fourth album, 2010’s Black City, was the culmination of years of hard work and experimentation, a darkly playful sound-world that envelops the listener like the arms of a malevolent lover. His last album, Beams, was a critical and commercial success. It is both a drastic departure from and worthy successor to Black City’s gothic masterwork. A suite of weird, wild, and queasily optimistic rhythm-driven pop songs. Dear ended the tour supporting Depeche Mode on their European stadium dates. Matthew's latest release is DJ Kicks on !K7. Matthew is a co-founder of both Ghostly International and its dancefloor offshoot, Spectral Sound. Matthew is a producer and remixer of the likes of The xx, Charlotte Gainsbourg, DJ Koze, Spoon, Hot Chip, Dubfire, Joris Voorn, Tegan & Sara, Daniel Avery, The Postal Service and Chemical Brothers; he’s made mixes for the Fabric mix series, DJ Kicks and Get Physical’s Body Language.