Today, Vancouver-based queer singer Mathew V announces Anything Goes, a new record that seeks to reframe the assumed heteronormative narratives of the Great American Songbook. Due out April 14 on 604 Records, Anything Goes takes standards by the likes of Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and Henry Mancini and draws out queer perspectives from the elegant imprecision of their timeless lyrics.
“Queer culture, gay history, and jazz music have a lot of parallels,” explains Mathew V. "Jazz music was vilified not just as a genre of music but as a lifestyle that society looked down upon. It was synonymous with sin. This music lives at the intersection of camp, glamor, and showmanship, which are all aspects that inform the very essence of my performance."
As the most traditional arrangement and delivery on the record, Mathew V’s take on George Gershwin’s “The Man I Love” pushes the boundaries of conventional jazz from the queer perspective. Of the process, Mathew says, “It's been exciting choosing songs like ‘The Man I Love,’ which a man like me may not have been able to sing when these songs were written,” and adds, “I’m at a place in my career and in my life that I not only want to sing at my highest caliber, but I want that music to come from my heart. I owe that to the little Mathew that was looking for this record all those years ago.”
“Queer culture, gay history, and jazz music have a lot of parallels,” explains Mathew V. "Jazz music was vilified not just as a genre of music but as a lifestyle that society looked down upon. It was synonymous with sin. This music lives at the intersection of camp, glamor, and showmanship, which are all aspects that inform the very essence of my performance."
As the most traditional arrangement and delivery on the record, Mathew V’s take on George Gershwin’s “The Man I Love” pushes the boundaries of conventional jazz from the queer perspective. Of the process, Mathew says, “It's been exciting choosing songs like ‘The Man I Love,’ which a man like me may not have been able to sing when these songs were written,” and adds, “I’m at a place in my career and in my life that I not only want to sing at my highest caliber, but I want that music to come from my heart. I owe that to the little Mathew that was looking for this record all those years ago.”
