Released today (March 25 2022), Matt Bednarsky’s new single, Finish Line, feels like a call to action. A thought provoking song which questions where humanity is headed and what is the end game with all of our new technologies. The song questions where is our Finish Line.
This is a really important message and one which reminds us a little of Joe Walsh’s “Analogue Man”. The advances in technology are all very well, but at the end of the day, are they really advances?
There’s a real Tom Petty/ Travelling Wibury’s feel to Finish Line which we love. Matt’s vocals are clear and strong. They’re upfront in the mix and there’s absolutely no question of whether the listener can hear that all important message.
The harmonies in the choruses are a nice touch. They’re suitably subtle and sit very comfortably in the mix, serving to make Bednarsky’s voice sound even more confident, rather than distracting the listener.
There’s a spot where Bednarsky sings the title of “Finish Line” and his control on the word “Line” which leads into a short guitar solo is superb. Great diaphragm control, Matt!
We particularly like the incidental guitar riffs throughout the track. They’re nice and subtle and fill the gaps well between the vocal lines. They sit very comfortably in the mix.
The guitar solo is simple but effective. We like the breakdown after the solo which is just hi-hat, guitar and vocals into a longer silence than you expect before pounding back in with that super-catchy chorus.
This is a well mixed and well produced track. There’s a few things that we personally would adjust, but obviously this is just personal taste. The snare feels a little too dominant in the song. Its sitting front and centre with the vocals and we feel that a little more reverb on it would sit it more comfortably in the mix. You can clearly hear the tuned note of the snare at around 130Hz which is quite low for a snare, and our personal taste would be nearer 200Hz to give it a little more smack and personality. The snare is also a little dominant around 4-4.5kHz – we’d suggest a cut in both the snare and the vocal track at this point. There’s a lot of information happening in that frequency range. Perhaps consider just a touch more overall reverb on the track.
Finish Line has some good development, some exciting rise and fall, thought provoking lyrics and some superb musicianship. We are very excited to hear more from Matt Bednarsky. We understand that he’s had some considerable success with sync licensing and can see why. Great stuff!