DenvilleRockaway This Week Interview

Name: Matthew Shadbolt
Hometown: Denville
Occupation: Interactive Graphic Designer
Lived here since: 2006

What CD would we find in your CD player at home or in your car right now?
It's usually a revolving mixture of things, but here's a list of albums which I've been playing a lot recently: Film School: "Hideout"; Interpol: "Our Love To Admire"; July Fourth: "Curtain Of Stars" EP; Editors: "An End Has A Start"; Stereolab: "ABC Music"; Radiohead: "Amnesiac"; and Joy Division: "Unknown Pleasures."

What genre of music do you prefer?
It varies, but in general I like indie music. This sometimes gets classified as "alternative', but it's a bit more specific than that. My parents always loved Motown, so I'm a sucker for a great pop tune as well.

What genre do you avoid?
Cover bands - this just seems so lazy to me.

Favorite artist of all time:
New Order

What was the name of the last CD you purchased?
"Tommy" by The Wedding Present.

First record:
"The Evil That Men Do" by Iron Maiden.

First CD:
"Brassneck" by The Wedding Present

Do you prefer records or CDs?
As a designer, I always preferred records over CDs. There was something really great about the size and format of records which appealed to me visually, especially where they had been more creative with what happened inside.

Do you download your music or buy it in the store?
I miss the experience of going to the store, but it's just easier these days to download it. I've always been an Apple user, so making the transition to the iPod and iTunes was very natural.

What do you think of the music that's being released today?
I think there's a lot of mainstream garbage out there, the worst of which I think is the "alternative" mainstream, but I think there's always great music being released, you just have to know where to go and find it.

Interview by Katelyn Farago, DenvilleRockaway This Week. Photo by Mary Shadbolt.