Dave Hunter & Kenneth Mulholland
If Dylan is the master then The Tallest Man On Earth (aka Kristian Matsson) is most definately his apprentice…
With one small stretch, The Tallest Man On Earth assumed control of a captivated crowd at the Arches. One man playing to a whole sell-out section of The Arches is an achievement in itself, and that was before he had even strummed the first chord. Thankfully, he does not disappoint an eager crowd. Opening with numbers such as ‘I won’t Be Found’ off the acclaimed ‘Shallow Grave’ album released in 2008 proved that Matsson at no stage looked over-awed by the onlookers. In fact, he seemed to be more concerned about being flattened by an onrushing train ploughing through the famous venue. Thankfully we have yet to witness this occurence since The Arches was converted in 1991.
It must be said at this point that Matsson is a somewhat enigmatic character. Hailing from Sweden and singing like Dylan does raise the odd eyebrow. So does having a few songs which enjoy a very similar chord structure, but he definitely pulls it off. The more you listen to his songs the more you are convinced of his song-writing skills. Crowd favourite ‘King of Spain’ is a perfect example of his layered approach as he depicts a longing for identity, “Well if you could reinvent my name, well if you could redirect my day, I wanna be the King of Spain”. Playing an extended set was a welcome bonus and he even swapped strings for keys quite effortlessly in the process.
Having toured with the likes of Bon Iver in America, The Tallest Man on Earth is in serious good company. Long may it continue…
www.myspace.com/thetallestmanonearth
That do’nt look like him