Making The Music He Loves: An Interview With Condewit

The LA muso is working on his second album.

Producer and front man for Condewit, Matthew, grew up in a small city in Los Angeles. Matthew credits LA being a small for allowing him the opportunity to learn how to play the guitar at age thirteen.

Known for being a musician in high school, Matthew obtained a major in classical guitar composition.

The muso, whose favourite musicians include Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine and Jimi Hendrix, says his message to fellow message is ‘don’t ever stop’.

But his musical journey started way back, if you will. Like some musicians who have been interviewed on The Musician, his family had a musical background. ‘My father plays guitar, mother sings, brother plays guitar, and my cousins are DJs.’

Good music is music you can get lost in it, he says, adding that music has the possibility to ‘change someone’s current mindset positively’.

Currently working on a second album, the project will contain old and new pieces.

L. SOJINI: Can you tell us about yourself? Where you’re from and what kind of musician you are.

Hey everyone! This is Condewit, but my friends call me Matthew. I’m the main producer and front man for the group. Growing up in a small city just north of LA, has definitely contributed to who I am. Since it was a small city, it gave me the opportunity to teach myself guitar at the age of thirteen.

I was known as the musician bro in high school. I attended Moorpark College with a music major in classical guitar composition. I was awarded the A.E. Truman Music Scholarship, only to continue my efforts with intentions of becoming a music professor.

L. SOJINI: How did you get into music?

CONDEWIT: I used music as an outlet during my teenage rebellious years. My family is very musically inclined. My father plays guitar, mother sings, brother plays guitar, and my cousins are DJs.

L. SOJINI: What do you think makes good music?

CONDEWIT: Good music is music you can get lost in. It can have the power to change someone’s current mindset positively. I've experienced the power of music first-hand and it is quite an amazing thing to experience.

L. SOJINI: What are your strengths and weaknesses as a musician?

CONDEWIT: To be honest, this is a somewhat loaded question. I feel that my strengths and weaknesses are intertwined. I have some much experience yet so much to learn.

I am working on exercises that get me better acquainted with the diverse chord progressions. Yeah, building your craft is never-ending. Mastering your craft takes a lifetime. I do love me some good jazz riffs too.

L. SOJINI: What are you currently working on?

CONDEWIT: I am working on my second album. I don’t want to drop any spoilers here. The new album will consist of some shelved pieces and some entirely new pieces. My overall approach to composing this album is completely different this time around. I guess you will have to wait for the next album to experience this musical progression.

L. SOJINI: How do you approach music? As in, what’s your philosophy when it comes to making music?

CONDEWIT: This question seems to be a very common question that many people ask. My approach to music varies based on my overall intended vibe for the music. When I first started out, I just plugged in, and worked with whatever came out.

In my earlier days, I started each track on an acoustic guitar which was translated to include effects written in the track (#DigitalDelay). When composing my first album, I spent time intensively researching what approach to take with each track. This gave me the ability to incorporate the approach of my influences in which each track would sound completely different from the one before and after it.

L. SOJINI: What are you most proud of to have achieved as a musician?

CONDEWIT: The most rewarding part of being a musician is watching my music take life after it is released. My music has been circulating on different playlists such as ‘Most Popular Artists’, ‘Most Listened Music In Seattle’, ‘New Rock Music’, ‘Most Popular Seattle Artists’, just to name a few.

This remarkable response to the music lead us to making the music video for ‘M.G.I.’ We are currently in the pre-production phase for the second music video which will be one of the most popular tracks I've ever written: ‘Playas en los Cielos (Ventura County).’

L. SOJINI: How do you promote your music?

CONDEWIT: We promote my music on social media and the official Condewit website. In this weird time, we are grateful that social media has kept this music alive.  We use several social media platforms to include: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook (FB Music), SoundCloud, Reverbnation, and most recently YouTube (YouTube music). The official Condewit website is available for everyone at condewit.com.

L. SOJINI: Favourite musician? Why?

CONDEWIT: Does it have to be just one? Hahaha! As a musicologist, I have multiple favorite musicians everywhere from Andres Segovia to Omar Rodriguez-Lopez of the Mars Volta to Claude Debussy to Johann Sebastian Bach to the Gregorian chants.

As you can see, my favorite musicians span across multiple styles of music. If you want to know which musicians and music producers influenced me the most, well I'm going to have to pay my musical respects to my dudes over in the Band 311: Nick Hexum, Pnut, SA, Chad, and Tim.

When I first heard Nick’s vocals for the first time, I was surprised at how similar our vocals were. It made me instantly think, if that guy can sing and make popular music, maybe I can too. In 2016, I was able to meet the group when they were performing at the Showbox in Seattle.

I met SA back in LA around 2007 at the Guitar Center in Hollywood, it was a good show, and I was surprised that he recognized me.

I want to pay respects to The Mars Volta: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, Cedric Bixler-Zavala (RIP Ikey Owens, RIP Jeremy Ward). Upon listening to the opening of Deloused In The Comatorium, I felt something different, as if something just unlocked in my head. Listening to music like that, showed me they created music they love and not focused on the expectations of the mainstream corporately owned music labels.

The inspiration from The Mars Volta was to challenge the typical formulas that are expected to be heard in that of corporately owned popular music. This showed me I could make the music that I wanted to honestly make, the music that just comes out of my jamming sometimes, regardless of adhering to the typical formulas. Some of my guitar influences are from Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine and Jimi Hendrix. I have a thing for making cosmic noises with my guitar, keyboard, and synthesizer. I was always intrigued as to how they were both able to make those sounds on their guitar that it inspired me to experiment with those sounds for myself.

L. SOJINI: What’s your advice or message to fellow musicians?

The advice I can offer other fellow musicians is the same advice I was given.

If you really want to do this for a living, don't ever stop. Find a way to stand out among the rest. You will see others quit, just keep going. A musician can be hired. A band is a collection of musicians that can rapidly change.

Focus your talent first and foremost. My music saved my life. Watching the life my musical art takes is inspiring. It truly makes me happy to wake up every morning, knowing I created something bigger than me. It is unbelievable how many people over the years were affected by my music. It's truly rewarding to see when others get influenced from your own efforts. I'm always glad to help, honestly.