Matt Berry returns with his first new solo album since 2021’s Blue Elephant. This time he delivers a soul and West Coast psych-inspired collection of songs, which attach an innate sense of melody to a lush, contemporary take on classic recording techniques. All of this is allied with Matt’s rich voice and unique lyrics.
Lead single ‘I Gotta Limit’ finds Matt trading lines with Kitty Liv (Kitty, Daisy and Lewis) as a man after a second chance with a woman impatient with his pleading. With a song structure inspired by Sly Stone, in a little over three minutes ‘I Gotta Limit’ crams in a plethora of musical ideas on an instantly catchy song which is part Northern Soul, part psych.
Once again, the album is testament to Matt’s exceptional musicianship, production skills and songwriting prowess. Almost every instrument is played by Matt including guitars, bass, a variety of keyboards (acoustic and Wurlitzer pianos), synthesizers and organs (including Moogs, Vox, Farfisa, Gibson, Eminent organs) and Mellotron. In many ways Heard Noises could be considered the perfect distillation of the extraordinary breadth of musical ideas across Matt’s albums to date.