Easter Sonday

Matre, Easter Sonday Combining classic party rocking hip hop with socially critical and poignantly introspective lyrics, LA’s Matre (pron. mat – trey) has established himself as one of hip hop’s premier artists to check for. Over the past twelve plus years Matre has lit up crowds throughout the U.S., Western Canada, Sweden and Brazil, sharing stages with rap greats ranging from Public Enemy to Acey Alone, The Black Eyed Peas to Tha Alkaholiks. A member of renowned hip hop collective LA2TheBay and LA super-group The League, and a long-time presence in LA’s underground scene, Matre has recorded with Prince Po (Organized Konfusion), Key Kool (The Visionaries) and Pigeon John, as well as frequent collaborations with LA2theBay cohorts, 2Mex, Xololanxinxo, Bus Driver and The Shape Shifters, among others. Matre’s sophomore solo release, Easter Sonday, is a reflection both of his personal and spiritual strivings as well as a commitment to addressing relevant, and often critical, social issues. As eclectic musically as in content, the album includes collaborations with artists from four countries (Brazil, Ecuador, Canada and the U.S.) and spans a vast spectrum of styles, from straight up boom-bap rap to reggae, latin rhythms and folk-soul, including collaborations with both 2Mex and Pigeon John as well as DJ Drez, Ecuadorian duo Esto es Eso and production by DJ Orator, Jericho J and Marechal (Brazil). The album’s first single, The Last Shall Be First, a powerful critique of the Religious Right, supported by a striking array of biblical quotes, has significantly moved those who hear it and is garnering praise, with fans online calling it, “a perfect eulogy for the bush administration” and “an amazing job presenting such horrible truths that so often go overlooked!” A follow up to two underground classics, League albums, Mirror Heroes (1999) and The Track Team (2003), as well as highly acclaimed solo release, Struggle Music (2005) and the Year of the Gift Mixtape (2008), Easter Sonday is hitting fans with the groundbreaking bangers they’re expecting, and catching the ears of new listeners with fresh, provocative music: eclectic ear-candy… with inspiring, conscious, deep-reaching content to back it… Enjoy.