There’s something playful, wistful, and hopeful in Québecois songwriter Matt Holubowski’s songs. His pop dreaminess reveals an idealism honed from his work as a humanitarian volunteer, exploring the world not as it is, but as it could be. But far from utopian, the songs are gentle and direct, looking out from eyes experienced in the tension and charm of living within a country that values pluralism. Those eyes look inward as well, giving his songs candid intrapersonal x-ray vision. After the release of his first album in 2014, he was eventually signed beyond North America. Songs in both French and English open doors, encouraging more open doors, as when The Cure’s Robert Smith invited him to perform in London, or when he enjoyed a residency at Banff Centre. With his fluid style, he even earned accolades for closing the Montreal International Jazz Festival.
Biography by Mary-Lynn Wardle