Matt O'Ree has been cranking out the blues-rock since he was an early teen. With all the trappings of a genuine guitar hero, he plays with fire in his fingers and blues in his soul. At age 13, he sunk his roots in the blues - Albert King, Howlin' Wolf, to Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan. After establishing a good foundation, at age 15, Matt played in various bands, honing his skills through time and pure dedication. This led to Matt being an accomplished studio musician only two years later.
In 1997, Matt began writing and recording material that evolved into his debut CD, 88 Miles. It was released in 1998 and gained national reviews and airplay, pushing the band to a higher level which included opening shows for national recording artists such as: Kansas, Buddy Guy, Leslie West and Mountain, The Outlaws, Govt Mule, Robin Trower, Johnny Winter, Dickie Betts, Gretchen Wilson, The Screamin Cheetah Wheelies, Bernard Allison, Chris Duarte, Indigenous, Robby Kreiger, Bill Perry, Walter Trout, Labambas Big Band, and Smokin Joe Kubek.
The completion of his second CD, Chalk It Up was the breaking point of blending blues and rock together to form a unique sound of his own. This was released in June 2001 and also received rave reviews with regional and national press recognition and airplay.
In the March 2006 issue of Guitar World Magazine there is a review of Matt O'Ree's latest release Shelf Life, appearing alongside numerous rock legends including Audioslave, Aerosmith, Jimi Hendrix, and The Deftones, that claims that New Jersey's Matt O'Ree is quickly carving out a name for himself as 2006's new guitar hero.
Some of Matt's most recent accomplishments include:
*Winner of Guitarmageddon King of the Blues 2006 hosted by BB King and John Mayer on 6/8/06
*Winner of the Acoustic Showdown on 5/23/06 sponsored by Upstage Magazine
*Won four 2005 Asbury Music Awards at the Legendary Stone Pony for:
Best Blues Band
Best Guitarist
Best Local Release - Shelf Life
Best Song of the Year - Saints & Sinners
*Sharing the stage with world famous drummer Buddy Miles
*Invited to play at Les Paul's Birthday Party
*Finalists in the Jimi Hendrix Electric Guitar Competition.
*Performed at the first NYC tribute to legendary blues-rock guitarist Rory Gallagher, winning him a standing ovation from a sold out crowd.
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