Old Shoe

Burning a hole through the fabric of the jam scene, Old Shoe has been on a meteoric rise since hosting their own festival, Shoe Fest, last summer. It’s easy to understand why they’re getting better and better gigs when you see one of their sets. From Paul Priest’s silky riffs to Joe Day’s wailing vocals and whirling keys, their sound is absolutely infectious. Priest and guitarist Matt Robinson harmonize extremely well on vocals for many of the bands originals. They captured Warren Haynes’ “Soul Shine” like a ship in a bottle and shook the cabin with their own “Day Rains Night.” - jambands.com

I had no previous experience with this band, and I have to say, these guys left me more pleasantly surprised than any of the other bands. I just didn't see this blend of jam rock, southern rock, blues, and bluegrass coming. Although the bluegrassy flavor only really stood out when Dan Huber busted out his sick electric upright bass. His traditional electric bass was cool and all, but man, that stand-up bass was something else. It had so much power. In combo with Huber's relentlessly high-stepping basslines it gave me a sensation of fat bass coming straight up through my heels to vibrate my spinal jelly. In other words, it was fucking awesome. He even busted out a bow to unleash even more rib-rattling moans of low tones. But these guys weren't all bass. They had an equally stellar knack for guitar interplay as Barefoot Fred, but these sections were all about the dirty blues. Basically, Old Shoe kicked ass and totally took me by surprise. - Chicago Jam Scene - Frazier

...Robinson's eclectic influences of Bob Marley, Phish and Neil Young speak for his music...What makes Everybody Dreams... unique is Robinson's progression from blues, to folk, to country. Each song is tweaked ever so subtly that the listener doesn't realize the musical transition... Check out the uppity "Spinach and Green Tea," the rockin' "Papa Man" and the twangy "Sad song Honey" for some serious musical fusion. - Revue Magazine

"..Fearless fans, SouthSide had fun with her first taste of country

music by Old Shoe. There were also moments when the

band added funky bass guitar rhythms to energize their country style.

One song even had a hint of Latin flavor during the guitar riffs. While

SouthSide normally may not have engaged in the country western scene,

after hearing this performance she cannot wait to see Matt Robinson's

show. For more information about Old Shoe, visit them at

www.myspace.com/oldshoe or www.oldshoeband.com..." - Fearless Radio, http://www.fearlessradio.com/



- Fearless Radio

" Instinctively organic sounds and good time grooves of Old Shoe." - Todd Berns of The Flabby Hoffman Show
- Todd Berns

January 29, 2010
By DENISE M. BARAN-UNLAND For Sun-Times Media
Several years ago, Matt Robinson was a frustrated accountant who longed to play and write music full time.

He went solo for a while, but by September 2009, Robinson, 32, of Chicago, had assembled a group of like-minded musicians to form Old Shoe, which plays a mix of rock favorites and band originals.

Old Shoe will perform at 9:30 p.m. Feb. 5 at the Chicago Street Pub, 75 N. Chicago St., Joliet. There is a $5 cover charge.

A film crew from Streetlight Productions Inc. -- co-owned by Joliet native Meghan Devine -- will shoot a documentary of the band that night.

Although Old Shoe's primary fan base consists of college students (they tend to be open to original songs), music-lovers of all ages are enjoying the band's shows.

"Our gigs are really upbeat," Robinson said. "Our intention is for people to get up and dance and have a fun time."

Robinson's musical aspirations began in high school with a friend who delighted in the riffs he made on his guitar. Then, in college, Robinson met musicians of all genres who were enthusiastic about their craft. He bought his first guitar at 20 and then saved enough money to quit his job and record a CD. He is thrilled to see his efforts evolve into a band.

"It's nice to collaborate; that's where the real magic happens," Robinson said. "My favorite bands -- The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Grateful Dead -- aren't solo projects. They're a collection of minds working together toward the same goal."

Each 30-something member of Old Shoe -- "Bear Slippers" Robinson, guitarist and vocalist; Paul "Groove Moccasin" Priest, guitarist and vocalist; Dan "Young Sandal" Huber, vocalist and bassist; and Chris "Thunder Boots" Morrow, drummer -- has arranged his schedule to optimize performance opportunities.

Robinson works two part-time jobs. He walks dogs and cleans a factory once a month. The other three members are teachers.

Their first self-titled CD was just released and is available at iTunes or at their shows. In addition to playing Chicago venues (such as The Double Door and Chicago Ribfest 2009), Old Shoe has taken its show on the road to Wisconsin and Iowa.

The band would like to expand its tour schedule and sign with a record label. "We plan to take this as far as we can," Robinson said. "Nothing else has made sense for me. Music has helped me through tough times, more than just learning life lessons. It has helped me relate to other people and help them so you don't feel so alone on your quest. It also serves as a vehicle for celebration."

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/oldshoeband. - Herald News

By Peg Reynolds Staff Reporter

A Pontiac native is a member of a folk rock band that will perform an album release show at Exit 197 of their first CD recording. The band, Old Shoe, will perform songs from its self-entitled CD, Saturday, Feb. 20, at the Pontiac bar.

“The music may be roots Americana, but not by any premeditated decision,” said Matt Robinson, son of Delbert and Cathy Robinson of Pontiac. “It’s just the natural result of four guys who love their country and the music in it.”

Robinson said he has been sitting on the name Old Shoe for years and found in fellow band members Dan Huber, Chris Morrow and Paul Priest the reason to bring it forward.

“Out grooves are dirt roads through green groves,” he said.

The Chicago-based band’s repertoire ranges from Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and the Grateful Dead to Radiohead, Wilco and Phish, Robinson said.

A Chicago film company, Streetlight Productions, is currently doing a documentary on the band. Old Shoe has played the main Chicago street festivals, such as Ribfest, Retro on Roscoe and smArt Show Festival.

“I started messing around with the guitar my senior year in high school but didn't start taking it seriously until after I graduated college,” Robinson said. “Something seemed magical about the guitar. My friend Andy would play these wonderful classic rock riffs, and it was really great. The music would take me, and still does, somewhere else — and I found that exciting and at times useful. When it's good, it moves you, just a like a good movie moves you.

“Looking back on when I was younger, I realized that I had always been turned on by music,” he said. “I would rummage through my older brother's CDs and I loved to dance. It was always around.

“Towards the end of college I had met some other like-minded musicians and I learned that jamming with other people was even better,” Robinson said.

He played his first gig in a cover band a year after that, when he was 24.

"We played all covers and repeated most of the songs because we ran out of them. So to say the least, I've come a long way," he said.

"The lyrics (on the album) deal with all types of things: living in Chicago - the hardships and the rewards of a big city, dealing with the desire to have accomplished more already and how it's all right that I haven't - relationships and love, having fun, a crazy trip to Thailand, and much, much more," he said. "We recorded it using old school equipment and went for that vibe. To my ears, what you hear is four guys in a room having a blast doing what they do."

This weekend Old Shoe is performing at the Double Door in Chicago, which has had such bands as The Rolling Stones, Smashing Pumpkins, The Roots and Ray LaMontagne.

"I consider myself a songwriter first, then a singer, then a guitarist," Robinson said. "I love writing songs, and I imagine I always will write."

More information about Robinson and Old Shoe can be found at Web sites: www.mattrobinsonmusic.com and www.myspace.com/oldshoeband.

The group cut a CD and will perform Saturday, Feb. 20, at Exit 197. From left are Paul Priest, Pontiac native Matt Robinson, Chris Morrow and Dan Huber
- The Daily Leader

CD Review: Old Shoe, Old Shoe, Self-Released

Psychedelic folk-rock jam band from Chicago. Band leader Matt Robinson's been around in this band and that. All the members have worked together in one incarnation or another and all of them with Robinson. There's a little bit folky Dylan; a little bit Ray Davies (or Hermans Hermits) with a wacky carnival charm; This is their debut and is a very successful ambitious effort from a group of highly enthusiastic talented musicians. Track #2 (Scrapper Jack) incorporates a bunch of wacky sound effects and is quite jaunty! Sorta rootsy, definitely with a modern twist. Track #4 is probably the twangiest the album gets. Track #9 is an instrumental.

RIYL: The Band, The Replacements, Old Crow Medicine Show, Big Star, The Kinks, Neil Young, The Monkees (latter-day)

FCC: Clean

Best: 7, 3, 2, 1, 4, 6

Reviewer: Di Kulka - WLUW CHICAGO 88.7 FM CD REVIEW