Born and raised in West Texas, Matt Hinkley is a rock ‘n’ roll songwriter, singer, and guitarist/multi-instrumentalist now residing in New York City. Despite his arrival in NYC as an actor, Hinkley has traveled full-circle back to the days of jamming out to Billy Idol’s "Rebel Yell" on his parents’ coffee table, wearing nothing but his favorite pair of Scooby Doo underwear. The Billy Idol and Scooby Doo underwear may be gone, but the energy, passion, and musicality remain in full force. In March, Hinkley released his self-titled debut album, an original and refreshing collection of twelve infectious songs ranging from acoustic Americana to full-bore rock ‘n’ roll. Hinkley's guitar-driven, tightly structured songs- all featuring his unmistakable baritone voice- draw comparisons to Wilco, The Beatles, and Ryan Adams, yet retain a unique character all their own. Hinkley supports his studio effort with a vigorous live show; his record release show to a capacity crowd at NYC’s historic Bitter End was said to have rocked the venue as hard as it had been in twenty years. Matt's songwriting is influenced musically by the country, blues, and folk of Texas, combined with the straight-up, explosive rock 'n' roll he was weaned on, and the tight songwriting style of classic artists like the Beatles. Lyrically, it's all about the decisions, events, and journeys that make up one's life, as well as the process of coming to terms with the fact that "when you reach that line, you cross that line on your own." In addition to his own projects, Hinkley lends his multiple talents to a number of other endeavors, the bulk of which are for NYC theater. Matt recently served as the resident music director and conductor/guitarist for Paul Scott Goodman's Rooms, which played off-Broadway at New World Stages; he also conducted the original cast recording, due out late summer on Time Life. In addition, Matt has earned his debut Broadway cast recording credit, playing guitar on the upcoming original cast album of Glory Days. Matt also has an extremely close and gratifying working relationship with Kleban and Jonathan Larson Award-winner Joe Iconis; he is a staple member of the Joe Iconis Rock 'n' Roll Jamboree (guitar, accordion, vocals), as seen on YouTube; he served as music director, arranger, rehearsal pianist, guitarist, and actor for SPF's production of Iconis's rock musical The Black Suits at the Public Theater; he has also acted as music director/supervisor for Iconis's ReWrite at Urban Stages, and for his critically acclaimed Things To Ruin at Second Stage and the Zipper Factory, in which he also performed as a singer in previous productions (Joe's Pub, Ars Nova). Other music directing credits include the Fringe Festival production of Green Eyes (MD, guitar), a reading of All Fall Down at the Dramatists Guild, and the national tour of Beehive (Asst. MD, guitar). Matt has provided guitar, piano, vocals, and more for numerous shows, concerts, readings, and recordings. Collaborations include The Burnt Part Boys, Mel Marvin, Sean Mahoney & Creighton Irons (Factory Girls), Ryan Scott Oliver (Alive At Ten), Bobby Cronin (Bratt Camp), 2007 Jonathan Larson Award winner Robert Maddock (Plastic!, and 2007 Nightlife Award Winner Lorinda Lisitza (Triumphant Baby: The Songs of Iconis and Maddock). Please take a moment to preview tracks from the album and to order your own copy- and if you like what you hear, spread the word!