Post by ProgBoi on Jun 20, 2020 18:34:00 GMT
Matthew Charles Berry (2 May 1974-)
Years Active: 1995-Present
Vocal Range: G2-B4
Matt Berry is a comedic English actor best known for his performances in The IT Crowd, Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, Snuff Box, Toast of London, and the What We Do In The Shadows TV show. In addition to his comedic talents, I found a few years ago that Berry also has a solid music career, releasing 5 studio albums since 2008. His musical influences are mostly rooted in prog and experimental artists (he’s covered Pink Floyd and Zappa, and is big on progressive electronic acts like Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk) as well as folk and pop music; his 2008 release, Opium, is more rock influenced while his next two albums, Witchazel and Kill The Wolf, have a more progressive folk feel. His last two albums, Music For Insomniacs (an electronic album in the vine of Rubycon or Phaedra with two 20+ minute tracks) and The Small Hours, add a few more influences to Berry’s sound.
Berry has a naturally low voice, as one can tell just by listening to his natural speaking voice, but his singing voice sits a bit higher; he comfortably sings around the mid-4th octave and the upper 3rd octave and, while he sounds comfortable even around the limits of his range, he tends not to push his voice too much. I’ve heard his voice described as an “everyman’s” voice, not too flashy and still a bit shaky at times, but I like his voice and tone; my brother has compared his voice to Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, if you want an idea of his style and approach to singing.
Thankfully, Berry doesn’t just sing on his albums, but also writes much of the music to his TV shows, like Snuff Box and Toast of London, and often sings a few songs in a couple of episodes. He also wrote a musical parody with Richard Ayoade called AD/BD: A Rock Opera that I need to check out.
Significant High Notes:
B4 (”Hot Dog”)
A4 (”Hot Dog”, “Into The Sky”)
G♯4 (“Obsessed and So Obscure”, “The Signs”, “So Low”)
G4 (“Accident at a Harvest Festival”, ”Hot Dog”, “Into The Sky”, “Medicine”, “The Signs”)
F♯4 (”Hot Dog”, “Medicine”, “The Signs”, “So Low”, “White Hood”)
F4 (“Knock Knock”, “Love is a Fool”, “Love is a Fool (Again)”, “Take My Hand”, “Theme for Snuff Box”, Toast of London: “The Unspeakable Play”)
E4 (“Lay Your Love on Me”, “The Peach & The Melon”, “The Signs”)
Significant Low Notes:
E3 (“Fallen Angel”)
E♭3 (“Knock Knock”)
D3 (“Fallen Angel”, “Farewell Summer Sun”, “Gather Up”, “Look in My Book”, “The Pheasant”, “The Small Hours”, “A Song For Rosie”)
C♯3 (“Gather Up”, “Look in My Book”, “Medicine”, “One More Hit”, “Seasons On Fire”, “The Small Hours”)
C3 (“Farewell Summer Sun”, Toast of London: “Ghost Town”, “Lay Your Love On Me”, “Opium”, “Mr. Green Genes”, “Rain Came Down”, “Say It Again”, “A Song For Rosie”)
B2 (“Bonfire”, “Devil Inside Me”, “Gather Up”, “Look in My Book”, “Medicine”, “One More Hit”, “Seasons On Fire”, “The Small Hours”, Toast of London: “Vanity Project”, “White Hood”)
B♭2 (“Farewell Summer Sun”)
A2 (“Bonfire”, “Devil Inside Me”, “Farewell Summer Sun”, “Hot Dog”, “Medicine”, “Roosting Time”, ”The Small Hours”, “White Hood”)
G♯2 (“Knock Knock”)
G2 (“Farewell Summer Sun”, “Roosting Time”, “Say It Again”)
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• Blue denotes falsetto and whistle notes.
• Green denotes harshly distorted notes.
• Grey denotes growl and fry notes.
• Boldface denotes outstanding passages.
• Italics denote non-melodic and spoken notes.
• Underlines denote obscured and background notes.