Logan Metz

There aren't many young players around actively channeling the powerful feel of New Orleans musicians like Doctor John, let alone doing it convincingly. This doesn't describe Chicago based musician/composer Logan Metz fairly, though. His danceable, joyful music has that same spirit, but it draws on too many influences to be so quickly categorized. Not too surprising, considering the musical company he's kept. Playing stages from "backwoods biker rallies to Walt Disney Concert Hall," Metz has played with American legends like Willie Nelson, Neil Young, Bob Weir (Grateful Dead) and Kris Kristofferson (composer of "Me and Bobby McGee" and "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down").

His debut record, The Last Remaining Payphone in L .A., is driven by acoustic instruments and employs expert songwriting bolstered by skillful arrangements by collaborator Lincoln Mendell and Metz himself. Very much in the vein of jazz influenced songwriters like Billy Joel, these songs seem poised to become instant favorites for fans of a good story set to music. Don't overlook the playing on the record, though. Short but sweet, the instrumental solos and fills that punctuate the vocal phrases are subtle yet poignant.

The first track, "Interesting People," is confident, playful and dripping with attitude. Sounding like it could have come directly off of Doctor John's Gumbo, the track features the live band that gives the record so much of its character. Worth noting especially is the sax solo. It's not just the music that makes Metz's writing unique though; his lyrics are crafted with a thoughtful cleverness honestly unparalleled. More than likely refined during the few years he spent teaching English (as well as the certain interest in language that preceded that time), the lyrics are humorous while remaining compeling.

Other highlights include the ballad "I Must Be Found," with a feel that brings to mind soul artists like Ray Charles. Metz makes the style his own without losing out on any authenticity. Likewise the title track, "The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A." channels classic country led by strumming guitars and vocal harmonies. Really, pretty much every track on The Last Remaining Payphone in L .A. is a strong offering in a style that's shamefully underutilized. Don't miss out on Metz's debut, but with any luck we'll have lots more to look forward to.

Track Listing: Interesting People, Almost (All Mine), The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A., I Must Be Found, Jericho, An Evening at The Cove, I Got a Woman, Augustine, Surrender, The Rabbits, Lullaby (For Everybody But My Baby (And Me))

Personnel: Logan Metz: Vocals, Piano, Acoustic Guitar; Lincoln Mendell: Keyboards, Piano (2 & 4), Harmonies; Hiroo Nakano: Drums; Pete Orlanski: Bass; Stephen Lewis: Guitar; Kyle O’Donnell: Tenor Sax; Gabe Steiner: Trumpet; Fabio Santana: Trombone; April Guthrie: Cello; Lauren Baba: Viola; Adrianne Pope: Violin; Mona Tian: Violin

Year Released: 2016 | Record Label: Self Produced - All About Jazz

Singer-songwriter Logan Metz’s jazzy crooning feels like a breath of fresh air; blown in from the not too distant past, and landing faultlessly on his solo debut album, The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A.. Metz’s songwriting style derives from a long tradition of storytelling pianists from California like Randy Newman and Tom Waits, which makes it all the more surprising to find out Metz is actually currently based out of Chicago. Even his barefooted playing style on the cover is reminiscent of sunnier shores, but perhaps it’s not that shocking, because there is slightly more of a chilliness and a sense of isolation pervading the album that separates him from his influences and his peers.

The production of the album is fantastic—lush strings and a horn section warmly embrace Metz’s enthusiastic piano playing and clever lyrics on songs like “Jericho” and the smokey jazz of “Almost (All Mine).” Even with the record’s large sound, Metz is the true star of the show; the dulcet tones of his voice seemingly torn out of a different bygone era. A stunning debut, The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A. is out October 21st, and has all of the possibilities within it to make Logan Metz one of America’s next great troubadours. - The Big Takeover

Like Leon Redbone or a more sartorially-oriented Randy Newman, Logan Metz lives through his instruments to tell a narrative rather than relying on the traditional format of a long play record. On The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A. Metz shares a cynical look back at his stint as an Angelino through championing virtue, condemning vice and all the while inhabiting a cacophony of vintage sounds. Metz is just as quickly one of the gang as he is one of the gang’s grandfathers, yet that hardly separates him from connecting with the sardonic youth scene.

The majority of Metz’ latest batch of songs sound as though lifted straight out of the Great American Songbook and filtered through an novelty player piano in some Southern California boardwalk. They emulate an era of near-perfection, while reflecting the tarnished admiration for a bygone era by a city that was still figuring out how to draw up its streets as Tin Pan Alley thrived. It’s either an alarming realization of how little the titular city has come or an intriguing jibe at the nicety of the statehood for no apparent reason, but on Payphone Metz pulls the curtains off the Steinway and tells it all.

Metz must be an enthralling live act, as the only foible of Payphone finds the record becoming entirely sleepier as the tracks wind down. As “An Evening At The Cove” looses steam from a raucous five tracks preceding it, there’s little catch up being played. Perhaps a slight re-sequencing could’ve set Payphone into a position of real Americana buzz – though there’s a sneaking suspicion it will generate some fun regardless. - MOXIPOP

With the release of his debut album, The Last Remaining Payphone in LA, out October 21st, Logan Metz makes piano lessons cool for the next generation.

A former Los Angeles-based music and English teacher, Metz has toured with multiple bands on multiple instruments, opening for the likes of Willie Nelson, Leon Russell, and Kris Kristofferson in venues ranging all the way up to the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Now Metz, an MFA recipient from the University of Chicago, is striking out on his own to bring his personal mix of pop-rock and nostalgic piano jazz to the musical masses.


With the release of his debut album, The Last Remaining Payphone in LA, out October 21st, Logan Metz makes piano lessons cool for the next generation.

A former Los Angeles-based music and English teacher, Metz has toured with multiple bands on multiple instruments, opening for the likes of Willie Nelson, Leon Russell, and Kris Kristofferson in venues ranging all the way up to the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Now Metz, an MFA recipient from the University of Chicago, is striking out on his own to bring his personal mix of pop-rock and nostalgic piano jazz to the musical masses.


Payphone is a really good album. So good, in fact, that I stopped it during track five, “Jericho,” then again at track seven and again at eleven, to Google Metz’s song lyrics and make sure he wasn’t just covering Billy Joel. Yeah. His songwriting is so strong I thought it was straight-up Billy Joel.

Some of Metz’s most interesting musical and lyrical turns throughout the album are reminiscent of two more recent piano playing-peers, Rufus Wainwright and Ben Folds, pairing the bright sounds of piano keys with blunt and biting imagery. Payphone’s lead single, “Interesting People,” featured above, gives a taste of Metz’s ability to dance on the line of light and dark in a way that makes big band sounds seem like something Larry David would want to sing. It’s not your typical Harry Connick Jr.-esque songwriting, it’s a nostalgic sound with an edge—it feels fresh. And it’s where Metz might find his greatest success in the future.

A few other tunes on Payphone, like the title track, featured below, land close to the Avett Brothers’ sweet spot of memorable folk harmonies matched with 21st century symbolism. The sound is not entirely different from what Metz accomplishes on piano, and it showcases his wide range of musical capability. What listeners might need from Metz next, however, is for him to do is own thing better than anyone else. - Huffington Post

Logan Metz’s The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A. is an absolute delight. Eleven tunes strong, this is singer-songwriter stuff in the wry and fun Randy Newman/Dr. John mode (when they are wry and fun) with Metz’s great New Orleans-infused, growly vocals and piano leading the way. The wonderfully sardonic “Interesting People” opens with its Dr. John shuck and give, Metz’s piano popping along with wonderful horn players behind him. A plinky, slow roll of piano, sweet vocals, and tenor sax informs the ballad “Almost (All Mine).” The title track has a slide guitar and snapping beat moving us along at high-neck, country speed. Harmonies from Lincoln Mendell inform the chorus perfectly. I like the piano ballads a lot – and there are a few of them here. “I Must Be Found” is a gospel-tinged slow tune with those horns once again lifting things to twirly heights. “Jericho” has a flirty violin behind the big drama of Metz’s piano and impassioned singing and “I Got a Woman” has some sad horns and sweet guitar placement behind Metz’s ivories and vocals, though it builds with organ from Mendell and the guitar rising. “Surrender” has strings even louder than the piano and Metz simply pleading “I surrender it all.” Actually, the latter part of The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A. pulls out more mournful piano-informed stops, switching to this slower stuff about half way through, which is perfectly fine as Metz handles this territory expertly. With the beginning of the album more upbeat and jaunty, the slowing-things-down bit is quite welcome. The Last Remaining Payphone in L.A. is great, great stuff. - Short & Sweet NYC