Current ipod rotation: Belle &; Sebastion, Ben Folds (Five), Ben Harper, Cake, Call and Response, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Clarks, DMB, Life Aquatic Soundtrack, The Elected, Elliot Smith, Eric Clapton, Jack Johnson, Jackson Browne, James Blunt, Jet, John Mayer (Trio), José Gonzalez, Josh Rouse, Jump Little Children, Los Lonely Boys, N*E*R*D, Nanci Griffith, Of Montreal, OK Go, Pete Yorn, Robbers on High Street, The Shins, The Stills, Sufjan Stevens, The Thrills, The Walkmen, Wilco, among a host of many others.
Two years ago, singer-songwriter René Moffatt had never performed in public, but on February 1, 2009, he was featured at the legendary Bitter End in New York City.
An indication of talent? Perhaps. A result of intense dedication to his craft? Most definitely.
A constant figure on the D.C. area's open mic scene, René has worked tirelessly on honing his performing and song writing skills. With a penchant for memorable melodies and insightful lyrics, this up-and-coming songster is quickly making a name for himself as a respected singer and song-writer in the nation's capital. René's music can be heard at both IOTA and Modern Times Coffeehouse on a weekly basis.
But where did he come from? How did he get here? Who is he?
Growing up in the absurdly normal town of Wichita Falls, Texas (Advertising Age coined it the most average town in the country), René spent his youth on soccer and baseball fields. "You know that movie The Sandlot, that's what my summers were like," he notes.
Sports would end up playing a major role in René's life: "I wanted to play professional soccer and ended up playing three years at the collegiate level."
By this point, you might be asking, where's the music?
It was there all along. While most kids were playing video games, René was digging through his parents record collection, creating music with his friends, and being influenced by likes of Pet Sounds, Simon & Garfunkel, Billy Joel, and of course, the Beatles.
But a VHS of Jackson Browne's Coming Home was a definite turning point. The tape was given to him by his uncle, a musician in his own right, and it played a huge role in René’s approach to writing introspective lyrics and beautiful melodies like the fable-esque "Demons On Your Sleeve".
Those early years of formal and informal music training were to be the foundation of a pursuit that wouldn't resurface until almost 10 years later.
René attended two different schools on the East Coast where being a college athlete took priority over everything. But he always found a way of creating music by sneaking into the practice rooms of the piano department to hammer away on various melodies. He'd write a song here and there but would never consider his music a primary pursuit.
Playing Catch Up
After returning home to finish his degree in Texas René found a job as an interactive designer back on the East Coast. A year of the 9 to 5 made him realize that personal expression was his true calling. So he picked up a guitar and just started playing. But it was a move to D.C in early 2006 that propelled him into his own as an artist. Lessons at the Levine School of Music shored up his guitar skills and within eight months he began performing in public. Countless open mics, a handful of shows, and hours of practice have ensued. It's safe to say René is trying to catch up. But if the pace of his musical accomplishments say anything, it’s that he's bound to do something big with his new found old love.
The studio track sounds great! Can't wait to hear more. I haven't forgotten about the CD of material you have for me to mix. I swear! You'll hear it pretty soon.
Hope your having a killer wednesday night. Thanks so much for being our friend on here...YOU ROCK! We really appreciate the support.
Our new record "Out of My Hands" just came out a couple weeks ago and we are super excited about it. We would LOVE it if you grabbed a copy on itunes : )
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