Matt Costa is cool, He’s groovy and he is on one of the coolest groovy labels out there, Brushfire Records. Matt burst onto the mainstream scene with his album Songs We Sing (2006) and songs like “Sunshine” and “These Arms”. He has done several songs with Jack Johnson for surf films and soundtracks and I really enjoyed “Mr. Pitiful” from Unfamiliar Faces (2008). Now I am fortunate enough to have a couple acquaintances at Brushfire Records so I received this special invite to see Matt play songs from his forthcoming album Mobile Chateau. I was so stoked to make the drive to L.A. and take in the vibe. The invite was extra intriguing because I lived in L.A. for over 8 years, worked in the music business, I went to hundreds of shows yet I had never heard of Tree People as a venue before, was it a house? Was it a park? What’s going on here?

I searched it up and found an amazing collective doing all kinds of amazing things for our ecological future while also bringing in art and education into their work. 

The venue at Tree People, called the Mark Taper Foundation Amphitheatre is nestled among the trees of a hillside that spills over the top of the ridgeline facing into the San Fernando Valley above Beverly Hills. I swung into a little lot at the same time as the Brushfire Records crew Emmett Malloy, Janella and friends.  Down the stone and earth stairs tucked under the trees in a glen oozing of easy eco-vibe was a small stage and amphitheatre with a gathering of about 65-75 people enjoying the free sandwiches, snacks and wine on hand.

I gathered the Brushfire Records gang for a quick photo; meet Ben, Kissy, Emmett, Janella and Josh, and then back to greeting all the gathering. Even Matt’s parents were in attendance.

The tunes were lush and the band played extremely well in this far out down to earth setting. The songs from Mobile Chateau are in the same vibe as Witchcraft full of organic analog Haight Ashbury influenced jangle mixed with fuzzy reverb. We plan to review the album soon so stayed tuned for that.

Our friends from Vans were on hand as Matt is part of a few VANS music projects. They were filming and shooting digital so I can’t wait to hear and see more about that. We’ll be sure to let you know what we find right here in the pages of Re:Cal mag.

What a beautiful night in among the trees.  Find out more about the forthcoming album Mobile Chateau and upcoming tour dates at;
www.brushfirerecords.com
www.mattcosta.com

And Don’t forget to check out TREE PEOPLE : )

www.treepeople.org

words and photos: Lou Niles