Self (stylized as sElf) is an American alternative pop rock band from

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropol ...

. The band is led by

Matt Mahaffey Matt Mahaffey (born June 9, 1973) is an American multi-instrumentalist, record producer, composer, and recording engineer best known for his band Self and his composer collective Cake In Space. Personal Mahaffey grew up in Kingsport, Tennessee ...

. The band currently consists of Chris James (keyboards, piano, samplers, guitar, backing vocals), Mac Burrus (bass guitar, keyboards, horns, backing vocals), and Jason Rawlings (drums). Past members include Matt's brother,

Mike Mahaffey Michael Darren Mahaffey (January 21, 1967 – May 25, 2005) was a founding member of the power pop band Self (band), Self. Founded with his brother, Matt Mahaffey, in the early 1990s, Self-released two major-label albums and various independent and ...

(lead guitar, keyboards, vocals) and Timm Nobles (bass guitar). Mahaffey cites

Electric Light Orchestra The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1970 by songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood with drummer Bev Bevan. Their music is characterised by a fusion of pop, classical a ...

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

, and

Pixies A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...

as some of his biggest musical influences.

Band history

Self began with founders Matt and Mike Mahaffey recording songs in their childhood home in the early 1990s, following brief forays with other groups. The band's debut album, '' Subliminal Plastic Motives'', was released in 1995 on the

Spongebath Records Spongebath Records was an independent record label based in Murfreesboro, Tennessee during the mid-nineties. During its heyday, Spongebath was often viewed as the vibrant center of Murfreesboro/Nashville's (and the Southeast's) music scene with a ...

, a label the Mahaffeys helped found. During this early period, the band featured Matt on vocals and guitar, Mike on lead guitar, Tim Nobles on bass, Chris James on keyboards and samplers, and Jason Rawlings on drums. The album was followed in 1997 by ''

The Half-Baked Serenade ''The Half-Baked Serenade'' is the second studio album by alternative pop/rock band Self. Initially designed only as an EP, the work eventually expanded into an album was and released in 1997 only though a mail-order catalog. Band member Matt Ma ...

,'' an album released exclusively through a mail order catalog, and in 1997, an album released for free via the Internet called ''

Feels Like Breakin' Shit ''Feels Like Breakin' Shit'', or ''Self...Feels Like Breakin' Shit'', is the third studio album by alternative pop/rock band Self (band), Self, which was released for free via the internet. Its 17 previously unreleased tracks include covers of Pr ...

''. Around this time, bassist Timm Nobles was replaced by Mac Burrus, formerly of Murfreesboro rock band

The Plain The Plain (french: La Plaine), better known as The Marsh (french: Le Marais), was the majority of independent deputies in the French National Convention during the French Revolution. They sat between the Girondists on their right and Montagnards ...

. An EP titled ''

Brunch Brunch is a meal eaten between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., sometimes accompanied by alcoholic drinks (typically champagne or a cocktail). The meal originated in the British hunt breakfast. The word ''brunch'' is a portmanteau of ''breakfast'' a ...

'' (1999) and the album '' Breakfast with Girls'' (1999) were co-released by the Spongebath and

DreamWorks DreamWorks may refer to: * DreamWorks Pictures, an American film production company of Amblin ** DreamWorks Television, an American television production company and division of the film studio ** DreamWorks Records, an American record label and f ...

labels. Back at Spongebath, Self released '' Gizmodgery'' in 2000, an album created entirely with children's toy instruments. That same year, Self released two more free Internet-only albums, ''

Self Goes Shopping ''Self Goes Shopping'' is a remix album by alternative pop/rock band Self. The album features various previously released Self songs played electronically in often humorous styles. The band released the songs for free via the Internet in 2000 af ...

'' and ''

Selfafornia ''Selfafornia'' is the sixth studio album by alternative pop/rock band Self The self is an individual as the object of that individual’s own reflective consciousness. Since the ''self'' is a reference by a subject to the same subject, this r ...

''. In 2005, Self again released an album for free on the Internet. ''

Porno, Mint & Grime ''Porno, Mint & Grime'' is a B-side compilation album by alternative pop/rock band Self. The album, Self's eighth album, was released for free in 2005 and available in physical form in 2017. It features B-sides and demos recorded for the album '' ...

'' consists of

demos Demos may refer to: Computing * DEMOS, a Soviet Unix-like operating system * DEMOS (ISP), the first internet service provider in the USSR * Demos Commander, an Orthodox File Manager for Unix-like systems * plural for Demo (computer programming) ...

recorded during the 2001-2004 sessions for the unreleased album ''

Ornament and Crime "Ornament and Crime" is an essay and lecture by modernist architect Adolf Loos that criticizes ornament in useful objects. History Contrary to popular belief that it was composed in 1908, Adolf Loos first gave the lecture in 1910 at the Akadem ...

.'' After a long hiatus, Self released an EP entitled

Super Fake Nice ''Super Fake Nice'' is the second EP by American pop rock band sElf. Announced in 2007, the EP released on July 29, 2014. It was the band’s first release since the B-side compilation Porno, Mint & Grime, ending a 9-year hiatus. The cover art ...

in 2014. In addition to these releases, Self contributed to several tribute albums, covering "Shame" on the

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...

tribute album ''

For the Masses ''For the Masses'' is a 1998 tribute album to the British band Depeche Mode, specifically the works of Martin Gore. The album charted in America and reached the Top 20 in Germany, making it the most successful Depeche Mode tribute album of all ...

'' in 1998 and "

Ana Ng "Ana Ng" ( ) is a song by alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released as the lead single from the band's 1988 album ''Lincoln''. Although the song was their first US chart appearance, hitting #11 on the US Modern Rock chart, the ...

," for the

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a d ...

tribute album ''Hello Radio: The Songs of They Might Be Giants'', released in July 2006.

Unreleased music

An album entitled ''

'' was completed in 2004 and was set to become the band's fifth commercial release. When

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

acquired

DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label operated until 200 ...

, the band's label at the time, the album was shelved indefinitely. A few songs from ''Ornament and Crime'' had been featured on the band's MySpace. After the album spent thirteen quiet years in limbo, ''Ornament and Crime'' was released on August 25, 2017 via El Camino Media, who had previously released

in 2014. A live video, intended to be released on home video formats, remains unreleased. Recorded in 2005 at

Spaceland Spaceland was an alternative rock/indie rock nightclub in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, that existed between 1995 and 2011. The club was formerly a popular disco to young locals called Dreams of LA. Spaceland's owner an ...

, the performance includes a cover of

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

's hit song "

Back in Black ''Back in Black'' is the seventh studio album by Australian rock band AC/DC. It was released on 25 July 1980 by Albert Productions and Atlantic Records. It is the band's first album to feature lead singer Brian Johnson, following the death of ...

." Several videos of songs from the DVD, including the "Back in Black" cover, have been posted online on Mahaffey's MySpace and

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

profiles.

Side projects and Super Fake Nice (2005-present)

New music and live performances since the release of ''Porno, Mint & Grime'' have been sporadic. Lead guitarist Mike Mahaffey died in May 2005, and his role in the band has yet to be filled, though the remaining members played a show in his honor on October 9, 2005. They have performed since as a full band and Matt Mahaffey has appeared as Self in solo performances. Despite this, members of the band have been working primarily on other projects. Rawlings played drums in a group called Suburban Tragedy, and Mahaffey also formed a new band,

Wired All Wrong Wired All Wrong is a nu metal band formed by musician/producers Matt Mahaffey of Self and Jeff Turzo previously of God Lives Underwater. The two have been longtime friends since a mix-up of their bands on MTV. Partly due to the unfortunate death ...

, with former

God Lives Underwater God Lives Underwater was an American rock band, formed during 1993 in Perkiomenville, Pennsylvania by vocalist/programmer David Reilly and guitarist/programmer Jeff Turzo. They were later joined by guitarist Andrew McGee and drummer Adam Kary ( ...

member

Jeff Turzo Jeff Turzo, as singer/programming and songwriting/production partner in the electro-rock band God Lives Underwater (GLU), spent the better part of the 1990s as a producer and touring artist, first signed by Rick Rubin to American Recordings in ...

. Wired All Wrong released their first album, '' Break Out The Battle Tapes'' on September 12, 2006. Additionally, Matt has worked as a producer and performer for other artists including

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...

and

Hellogoodbye Hellogoodbye (sometimes styled as hellogoodbye) is an American pop rock band that was formed in Huntington Beach, California in 2001 by singer Forrest Kline. They were signed to Drive-Thru Records and released their first full-length album ''Zom ...

and as a composer for children's TV shows including Nickelodeon's

Ni Hao, Kai-Lan ''Ni Hao, Kai-Lan'' is an American animated children's television series produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It began as a series of three interstitial shorts on Nick Jr. called ''Downward Doghouse''. The first full episode was initially se ...

. On January 13, 2007, Mahaffey announced on his MySpace blog that a new Self album, tentatively titled ''Super Fake Nice'', was in the works. In late 2008, several new tracks appeared on his MySpace. On May 19, 2010, Self-released the single "Could You Love Me Now?" for digital download. In July 2011, work on a new studio album was said to be progressing, and Mahaffey stated that he was considering

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

as a means of funding the project. On November 30, 2011, Self made available the track "Looks and Money" for digital download. Matt Mahaffey officially announced the production of the new Self album on December 15, 2011. As of 2012, Mahaffey has permanently returned to the Nashville area. Self played a sold-out reunion show in Nashville on December 29, 2012 at

Exit/In Exit/In is a music venue in Nashville, Tennessee. Exit/In is located on Elliston Place near Centennial Park and Vanderbilt University, west of downtown. It opened in 1971 under the management of Owsley Manier and Brugh Reynolds. As a small ven ...

with

Fluid Ounces A fluid ounce (abbreviated fl oz, fl. oz. or oz. fl., old forms ℥, fl ℥, f℥, ƒ ℥) is a unit of volume (also called ''capacity'') typically used for measuring liquids. The British Imperial, the United States customary, and the United St ...

guitarist Brian Rogers filled Mike Mahaffey's guitar slot.

Discography

Albums

Compilations

EPs

*''Brunch'' (1999) *''

'' (2014)

Singles

Cannon A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...

" (1995)

*" So Low" (1996) BMG *"KiDdies"/"Suzie Q Sailaway" (1999)

*"Meg Ryan" (1999)

*"Could You Love Me Now?" (2010) Self Digital *"Looks and Money" (2011) Fresh Imperial *"Monogamy/Could You Love Me Now" (2015) Release the Krakken/Music Of Big Deal (BMI)

References

External links

* Allmusic - Self biography
Matt Mahaffey / Self MySpace page

Self's discography at the Discogs database