William Matthew Noveskey (born June 16, 1976 in

Adrian Adrian is a form of the Latin language, Latin given name Adrianus (given name), Adrianus or Hadrianus (disambiguation), Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria (river), Adria from the Venetic language, Venetic and ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, USA) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, guitarist, and bassist, best known as the bassist in the bands

Blue October Blue October is an American rock band originally from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and is currently composed of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, bassist M ...

and Harvard of the South, and as bassist and frontman of the bands (a+)machines and Icarus Bell.

Early life

Noveskey moved from

Traverse City Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was ...

at the age of ten. He grew up in a very musical household in

Northern Michigan Northern Michigan, also known as Northern Lower Michigan (known colloquially to residents of more southerly parts of the state and summer residents from cities such as Detroit as " Up North"), is a region of the U.S. state of Michigan. A popul ...

. He had two uncles who both played bass guitar and sang in touring rock bands, his brother plays

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

, and his grandparents played

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

and

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

. Inspired by his uncle Jim Noveskey, Matt started playing bass at age eleven and has been playing in bands since he was a teenager. Matt has said that he was interested in playing both drums and guitar, and that playing bass sort of allowed him to do both at the same time. His first band was called ''Love Muscle'' and he also played in the bands ''Terra Firma'', ''Eat Some Tuna'', and ''Toast'', the latter of which included his brother, Dave Irish, on drums. His early musical influences were bassists

Geddy Lee Geddy Lee (born Gary Lee Weinrib; July 29, 1953) is a Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush. Lee joined the band in September 1968, at the re ...

James Jamerson James Lee Jamerson (January 29, 1936 – August 2, 1983) was an American bass player. He was the uncredited bassist on most of the Motown Records hits in the 1960s and early 1970s (Motown did not list session musician credits on their releases u ...

Larry Graham Larry Graham Jr. (born August 14, 1946) is an American bassist and baritone singer, both with the psychedelic soul/funk band Sly and the Family Stone and as the founder and frontman of Graham Central Station. In 1980, he released the single "O ...

, and

Flea Flea, the common name for the order Siphonaptera, includes 2,500 species of small flightless insects that live as external parasites of mammals and birds. Fleas live by ingesting the blood of their hosts. Adult fleas grow to about long, a ...

. Noveskey graduated from Saint Francis High School in

in 1994. He attended college at

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

and

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...

, first majoring in English, and later in

elementary education Primary education or elementary education is typically the first stage of formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary school. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or firs ...

. He bartended while playing weekend shows with a variety of local acts, including the bands ''Switch'' and ''Botfly''. Acting on a tip from his booking agent, in late 1998 he successfully auditioned for

and moved to

San Marcos, Texas San Marcos ( ) is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city's limits extend into Caldwell and Guadalupe Counties, as well. San Marcos is within the Austin–Round Rock metropolitan area and on the Interstate 35 ...

. His first full show with Blue October was at Satellite Lounge in Houston, Texas on February 12, 1999.

Blue October

Noveskey joined Blue October in 1998 after the departure of the group's original bassist, Liz Mullally. Noveskey played guitar, bass and sang backing vocals on Blue October's 2000 major label debut ''

Consent to Treatment ''Consent to Treatment'' is the second album by Blue October. Pre-production sessions took place in Nashville with producer Blue Miller, and the final album recording sessions took place at Bay 7 Studios in Valley Village and Media Vortex in B ...

.'' He also created the artwork for the album and along with

Justin Furstenfeld Justin Steward Furstenfeld (born December 14, 1975) is an American musician and actor. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and lyricist of rock band Blue October. He is also a member of the band Harvard of the South. Personal life When not tou ...

, co-wrote the single "James" and the live fan-favorite "You Make Me Smile." Noveskey toured extensively with Blue October in support of ''Consent to Treatment.'' He stayed with the band even after they were dropped from

Universal Records 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 ...

, but left due to health reasons at the end of the tour in late 2002. Blue October re-signed with Universal for the release of 2003's ''

History for Sale ''History for Sale'' is the third album by Blue October. The title of the album comes from a lyric in the song "Amazing". It was recorded at Sound Arts Studios in Houston, Texas, and at Stomp Box Studios in Arlington, Texas, and released in the ...

'' on which Noveskey contributed. Matt eventually fully rejoined Blue October in late 2004. During his absence, Blue October never played the Noveskey-penned "You Make Me Smile" during a concert. The song was included as the opening track on the band's 2006 platinum album ''

Foiled ''Foiled'' is the fourth studio album by American rock band Blue October, released on April 4, 2006, by Universal Records. The album debuted at number 29 on the US ''Billboard'' 200, marking the band's first entry on the chart. The album was cer ...

'' and is now a live staple. After the departure of Blue October's lead guitarist, C.B. Hudson, in 2010, Noveskey temporarily took over guitar duty during performances until the band hired Julian Mandrake as a full-time lead guitarist.

(a+)machines

During his absence from Blue October, Noveskey formed a second band with Blue October's drum technician Alan Adams, who had previously been the drummer for the bands Falling Jupiter and Flywater Washington. The new band, (a+)machines, also includes Ryan Holley and Chris Lynch. Noveskey is the primary singer and lyricist in the band, which have recorded a 5-track EP and a

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

. The band actively toured during 2004 and 2005 with such acts as Canvas,

SouthFM SouthFM is an American alternative rock band based in Dallas, Texas. They formed in 2000 and disbanded in October 2006. The band officially released two full-length albums, ''Drama Kids'' (2003) and ''Swallowing the Pill'' (2005). The band reun ...

, 7 Mary 3, Vallejo and the

Burden Brothers Burden Brothers are a hard rock band formed in Dallas, Texas, by Toadies lead singer/songwriter Vaden Todd Lewis and Reverend Horton Heat/Izzy Stradlin drummer Taz Bentley.Paoletta, Michael (2004)Singles: New & Noteworthy: Burden Brothers Beauti ...

, and even opened for Blue October. They also played an official showcase at

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

in 2005. The group have been on hiatus while Noveskey and Adams tour with Blue October. (a+)machines has periodically reunited to play live concerts. Their most recent show was October 27, 2018 in Austin.

Icarus Bell

In 2019 Matt started working with Alan Adams on a new musical project called Icarus Bell. With the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

sidelining Blue October's tour plans, Matt was able to devote more focus to Icarus Bell. The duo began recording their debut album in 2020, which features contributions from Paco Estrada,

Scott Graham Scott Graham (born June 10, 1965) is an American sportscaster best known for his broadcasts of the Philadelphia Phillies, his work with NFL Films, and his studio hosting of '' The NFL on Westwood One''. He has lived and worked near Philadelphia f ...

Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal Ronald Jay Blumenthal (born September 25, 1969), better known by his stage name Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal or just simply as Bumblefoot, is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. He adopted his nickname from the bacterial infection of the s ...

Lukas Rossi Lukas Rossi (born December 21, 1976) is a Canadian rock singer and musician. He was the winner of the CBS Television reality series '' Rock Star: Supernova'' – a televised audition contest to become lead singer of the hard rock supergroup ''Ro ...

, Kelsey Flanagan,

Will Knaak William Carter Knaak (born September 23, 1984 in Austin, Texas, United States) is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter who has served as a sideman in several bands, released his own albums as a solo artist and frontman, and was the lead g ...

and

Ryan Delahoussaye Blue October is an American rock band originally from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and is currently composed of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, bassis ...

, among others. Icarus Bell released their debut single "Aces" in December 2020. In June 2021 Icarus Bell's music video for their song "Vultures" received a bronze Addy award from the Austin chapter of the

American Advertising Federation The American Advertising Federation (AAF), headquartered in Washington, D.C., is the oldest national advertising trade association in the United States. The AAF also has 15 district operations, each located in and representing a different region o ...

. They plan to release their debut album in 2023.

Other music projects

While not touring and recording with his bands, Noveskey lends his services as a bassist, songwriter, vocalist and

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

for other recording artists in a variety of musical genres Noveskey started producing other artists in 2006, and in January 2008 he formed a production company called 116 Producers with producer/engineer Chuck Alkazian. The duo mainly worked out of Detroit and Austin. Several of the artists Noveskey produced have signed to major labels, won awards, achieved chart success and had their songs placed in movies and television shows. Songs Noveskey has produced or co-written have charted at #1 on iTunes

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

, #1 on

iHeartRadio iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming Computing platform, platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbr ...

, Top 10 iTunes pop, Top 20 iTunes overall, Top 30

Alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

, Top 40

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

, and Top 30

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

. In addition to producing, Noveskey is the proprietor of Wanderlust Artist Management and Promotion, a company that manages and promotes the artists he produces. His current roster includes the bands I Am Dynamite, Dossey and Courrier. Matt also manages Dalton Rapattoni who finished third on

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

, and he also produced Rapattoni's debut solo album ''Nobody's Home''. In 2012 Noveskey along with Blue October's guitarist

C.B. Hudson Blue October is an American rock band originally from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and is currently composed of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, bassist ...

, broke ground on Orb Recording Studios, a world class residential recording studio in Austin, which opened in 2013. In 2014 Orb Studios was selected as Austin's best recording studio in the Austin Music Industry Awards. Noveskey also tours as a solo artist, often sharing the stage with friends and bandmates such as

, Joseph King, Jeff Crowder, Wesley Lunsford, Ryan Holley,

Casey McPherson Casey McPherson (born September 15, 1978) is a singer and songwriter based in Austin, Texas where he lives with his two daughters. He is currently the frontman of the bands Alpha Rev and Flying Colors, as well as his own Casey McPherson. He has ...

, Paco Estrada and

Johnny Goudie John Charles Goudie (born October 14, 1968, Coral Gables, Florida) is a Cuban-American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumental musician, record producer, actor, and podcaster based in Austin, Texas. Over his five-decade career, he has received ...

. Matt's solo sets contain a mix of his solo songs, (a+)machines songs, Blue October songs and covers. He is often accompanied by his (a+)machines bandmate Ryan Holley. In 2014, Noveskey joined the band '' Harvard of the South'' with Steve Schiltz of

Longwave In radio, longwave, long wave or long-wave, and commonly abbreviated LW, refers to parts of the radio spectrum with wavelengths longer than what was originally called the medium-wave broadcasting band. The term is historic, dating from the e ...

and Justin and Jeremy Furstenfeld of Blue October. Harvard of the South released their long-awaited debut album in December 2020. Matt has also toured and played shows as a live member of The Paco Estrada Band, Megan Becker Band, and

Alpha Rev Alpha Rev is an American alternative rock band from Austin, Texas, fronted by Casey McPherson (formerly of Endochine). McPherson remains the group's only consistent member, although historically the core members have also included Zak Loy on lead ...

. He produced and played bass on Paco Estrada's album ''Bedtime Stories'' and also played bass on Estrada's live album ''Dancing With The Devil'', both of which were recorded at Noveskey's Orb Studios. Matt also plays bass in the

-fronted side project The Meeting Place. Noveskey is a celebrity endorser of Fender basses, Aguilar bass amps, Michael Kelly acoustic basses, Old School FX pedals and Black Diamond strings, and the first

Moniker A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

bass guitar was custom-built for Noveskey in 2013. He also is a member of the advisory board for Black Fret, an Austin-based organization that finds and funds local music talent. In 2019 Noveskey became a member of industrial/punk/hard rock supergroup

The Joy Thieves The Joy Thieves is a musical supergroup, consisting of current, former, and touring members of bands such as Ministry, Stabbing Westward, The Rollins Band, Killing Joke, Pigface, Revolting Cocks, , David Bowie, Machines of Loving Grace, Marilyn M ...

. In 2021 Premiere Career Guidance (PCG), a

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

-based artist development company, announced their expansion into the Austin market, and the appointment of Matt Noveskey as head of their Austin division. In 2022 Noveskey was added to the roster of Los Angeles-based Waldman Management as a producer/songwriter.

Artist discography

With Blue October *''

'' (2000) *''

'' (2003) *''

'' (2006) *'' Teach Your Baby Well Live'' (2007) *''

Approaching Normal ''Approaching Normal'' is the fifth studio album by alternative rock band Blue October. The album was released on March 24, 2009 and debuted at number thirteen on the Billboard charts. Background Justin Furstenfeld unveiled the title and tenta ...

'' (2009) *'' Ugly Side: An Acoustic Evening With Blue October'' (2011) *''

Any Man in America ''Any Man in America'' is the sixth studio album and ninth album overall by alternative rock band Blue October. The album was recorded at Matchbox Studios in Austin, Texas between Summer of 2010 and March 2011, and was released August 16, 2011 ...

'' (2011) *'' Sway'' (2013) *'' Things We Do at Night (Live from Texas)'' (2015) *''

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

'' (2016) *'' I Hope You're Happy'' (2018) *''Live from Manchester'' (2018) *''

This Is What I Live For ''This Is What I Live For'' is the tenth studio album by Blue October, released via Up/Down-Brando Records on October 23, 2020 after originally being scheduled for September 18, 2020. The artwork for the album was created by Phillip Nichols. ''Thi ...

'' (2020) *'' Spinning the Truth Around'' (2022) With (a+)machines *''(a+)machines'' EP (2004) *''Live @ Momo's'' (2006) With Harvard of the South *''Miracle'' EP (2014) *''Harvard of the South'' LP (2020)

Producer discography

*Five Dollar Friend - ''XOXORx (Kisses, Hugs, and Prescription Drugs)'' (2006) *Darby - ''The Clearing'' (2007) *Dawn Over Zero - ''Catapult'' (2007) *Wesley Lunsford (& The Selfless Season) - ''The Mixlab Demonstration'' (2007) *I Am Dynamite - ''Mahoney'' (2008) * Emphatic - ''Goodbye Girl'' (2009) * Language Room - ''One By One'' (2009) *Courrier - ''A Violent Flame'' (2010) *Deep Ella - ''You. me. and the Spider'' (2010) *Gravity - ''Gravity'' (2010) * Language Room - ''Language Room'' (2010) *Wesley Lunsford (& The Selfless Season) - ''The Selfless Season'' (2010) *23 Shades - ''A New Day to Learn'' (2011) *Booth - ''Booth'' (2011) *Brannigan - ''Lucky Sound'' (2011) *Giants in the Earth - ''The Drug II'' (2011) *Jesse Felder - ''What's Underneath'' (2011) *I Am Dynamite - ''SuperMegaFantastic'' (2011) *Manna - ''Chronic Hives'' (2011) *Courrier - ''Love is a Fire'' (2012) *Little Brave - ''Wild'' (2012) *Moonlight Social - ''Heading South'' (2012) *Penni - ''Eleven Stories Down'' (2012) *Snake Skin Prison - ''Smokin Whiskey'' (2012) *The Strive - ''Design the Road'' (2012) *Cody Bryan Band - ''Wreck Me'' (2013) *Edison Chair - ''Edison Chair'' (2013) *

Joshua Radin Joshua Radin (born June 14, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter. He has recorded nine studio albums, and his songs have been used in a number of films and TV series. His most successful album, ''Simple Times'', was released in 2008. Beginnin ...

- ''Wax Wings'' (2013) *Reed Turner - ''Ghosts in the Attic'' (2013) *Swimming With Bears - ''Paw'' (2013) *Tori Vasquez - ''Wear You Thin'' (2013) * Waterloo Revival- (ep) (2013) *Wesley Lunsford (& The Selfless Season) - ''Wesley Lunsford'' (2013) *TheLastPlaceYouLook - ''TheLastPlaceYouLook'' (2013) *Vinyl Pilot - ''A Beautiful Disaster'' (2013) * KIONA - ''Midnight Holiday'' (2014) *

Quiet Company Quiet Company is an American rock band from Austin, Texas, fronted by Taylor Muse. They have released five albums, which includes a re-release of their debut album '' Shine Honesty'', multiple EPs, a live DVD, and Christmas-themed offerings. They ...

- ''Transgressor'' (2015) * Paco Estrada - ''Bedtime Stories'' (2015) *Tori Vasquez - ew album(2015) *I Am Dynamite - ''Wasa Tusa'' (2015) *Reed Turner - ''Native Tongue'' (2015) *Cody Bryan Band - ''Small Town Noise'' (2015) * Fly Away Hero - ''Lost and Found'' (2015) * Daryll "DMC' McDaniels - ew album(2016) *

Cavo Cavo is an American hard rock band from St. Louis, Missouri. Because of their sound and musical influences, they are sometimes classified as post-grunge. Band history In late 2000, guitarist Chris Hobbs, bassist Ryan Kemp, and drummer Chad ...

- ''

Bridges A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whic ...

'' (2016) *Ivory Tribes - ''Jungles'' (2016) *Soapbox Revolution - (ep) (2016) *

- (ep) (2015) *Nomad City - (ep) (2016) *

Jibe A jibe (US) or gybe (Britain) is a sailing maneuver whereby a sailing vessel reaching downwind turns its stern through the wind, which then exerts its force from the opposite side of the vessel. Because the mainsail boom can swing across ...

- ''Epic Tales of Human Nature'' (2017) * Dalton Rapattoni - ''Nobody's Home'' (2017) *

Tje Austin Tje Austin, pronounced TYE, is an American R&B singer-songwriter based out of Austin, Texas. He is also a former contestant of NBC's singing competition ''The Voice''. Background Tje Austin was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, and adopted by a Mormon ...

- ''I Belong to You'' (2017) *Nakayla - ''Queen of Hearts'' (2018) *Adri Lavigne - ''Take Me Home'' (2019) *Hold on Hollywood - ''Love Stories'' (2020) *Big Story - ''BEAZT'' (2020) *James Mackenzie - ''The Honeymoon'' (2020) *Elijah Delgado - ''Grow'' (2020) *Lia Catallo - ''In My Fantasies'' (2020) *Dossey - ''Animal'' (2021) *Ellie Reed - ''Sunsets and Silver Linings'' (2021) *In The Trench - ''Nightmares EP'' (2021)

References

External links

Matt Novesky: Inside the Gear RoomMatt Noveskey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Noveskey, Matt 1976 births Living people Alternative rock bass guitarists Alternative rock singers American alternative rock musicians American male singers Record producers from Texas American rock bass guitarists American male bass guitarists American rock guitarists American male guitarists American rock singers Blue October members Singers from Michigan Musicians from Austin, Texas Writers from Austin, Texas People from Traverse City, Michigan Songwriters from Michigan Songwriters from Texas Guitarists from Michigan Guitarists from Texas 21st-century American singers 21st-century American bass guitarists