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Quantaloup is Robin Matte's musical project. My musical adventure began at age 12 when I took classical guitar lessons. I was a big Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Beatles fan. My distaste for theory and technique made me quit the lessons, though I kept fooling around with my guitar. In 1996, aged 14, I met my life-long friend Keven Bernard who introduced and taught me to make music using the computer. We were composing electronic pieces using Scream Tracker and later, Impulse Tracker. My results weren’t very promising, but at least, I had fun doing it.
In 1998, I founded with friends Phil Bertrand and Keven Bernard the short-lived comical death metal band “Harvesters of Death” who had relatively significant success with the late MP3.com community, dominating the death metal charts for several months in the winter and spring of 1999. The band was disbanded after the tragic death of singer Phil Bertrand.
Years later, in 2004, I had enough money to buy myself the necessary equipment (a computer, a new guitar, the must-own Line6 PodXT, and a bunch of quality samples) to start experimenting again with music. From 2004 to 2006, I tried to do the best I could with the gear and knowledge I had, exploring different styles from electronica to metal. The Nihilum EP compiles the best tracks from those years of experiment. Some tracks were achieved with the inestimable help of friends: keyboardist/producer Keven Bernard, guitarist Carlos Gonzalez and singer Brigitte Flansberry. Many tracks were left unreleased and placed on the “Failed Rituals” collection. Though Nihilum was a considerable leap forward in the overall quality of production, most of the songs sounded disorganized and unstructured, and consists mainly of exploratory instrumental material.
In late 2006, I decided to incorporate vocals and give more importance to guitars in my compositions. I bought microphones and an acoustic guitar made by Taylor and began to search for new ideas. The pseudonym Quantaloup was later chosen, following an advice received in a dream. 2007 has of yet been the most productive year in my musical career. I have recorded many simple songs and focused on a more “pop” approach, conveying messages of peace and self-examination. I created the Quantaloup’s MySpace site and this official website in November 2007, making my songs available to the public for the first time. I am planning to release an album compiling those songs by early 2008. Meanwhile, it is possible to buy and download my songs on this website or on Quantaloup’s MySpace profile.
I have already decided to take a new musical direction for the next year. I want to get back to experimentation, to work more with the piano and electronic samples, but keeping the higher standards I have set in 2007. Come back soon for new material! |
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