Striking Matches Explained

Striking Matches
Origin:	Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Years Active:	2007–present
Current Members:	Sarah Zimmermann Justin Davis

Striking Matches is an American duo consisting of guitarists/songwriters Sarah Zimmermann and Justin Davis.

History

Meeting in a guitar seminar class at Nashville's Belmont University in 2007,^{[1] [2]} Zimmermann and Davis combined their talents and began honing their songwriting and performance skills. Shortly thereafter, they quit school to pursue their music career full-time.^[3] The duo made their performing debut at Nashville's Bluebird Café.^[4] They self-released a self-titled EP in October 2012.^[5]

2012: Nashville (TV Show)

On a trip to Nashville, the music supervisor for the television series Nashville, Frankie Pine, heard Justin Davis and Sarah Zimmermann who performed for her at the office of Universal Publishing, and decided to use their songs on the show.^[6] "When the Right One Comes Along" became their first song to be featured in the show,^[7] and a total of nine of their songs have been featured in the show's four seasons:^[8]

• "When the Right One Comes Along" (Performed by Clare Bowen and Sam Palladio in S01E08 and in S04E11). Included in and in The Music of Nashville, Season 1: The Complete Collection
• "Hangin' On a Lie" (Performed by Hayden Panettiere in S01E17). Included in The Music of Nashville, Season 1: The Complete Collection
• "This Love Ain't Big Enough" (Performed by Hayden Panettiere in S02E01).
• "Playin' Tricks" (Performed by Charles Esten in S02E10 and S02E16). Included in
• "I Ain't Leaving Without Your Love" (Performed by Jonathan Jackson, Sam Palladio and Chaley Rose in S02E15). Included in
• "Like New" (Performed by Charles Esten in S02E15 and S04E07). Included in
• "If It's Love" (Performed by Chris Carmack in S03E01). Included in
• "Good Love" (Performed by Aubrey Peeples in S03E05).
• "The Rubble" (Performed by Clare Bowen and Sam Palladio in S04E13). Included in

2015: Nothing but the Silence

The duo became signed to the newly revived I.R.S. Records label, their debut album Nothing but the Silence, produced by T Bone Burnett, was released on March 22, 2015.^[9] The album debuted at No. 25 on the Top Country Albums chart, with 1,800 copies sold for its debut week.^[10] It also reached No. 1 on UK Country iTunes.^[11]

2019: EP Series

Striking Matches plans to release a series three EPs in 2019 and 2020, entitled Morning, Noon, and Night. Striking Matches released a new EP, Morning, in May 2019, which was their first release after leaving Capitol Records.^[12] The group released a music video for the song "Don't Hold Back" in April 2019, prior to the release of the EP. The video was directed by Casey Pierce.

The duo release the second single off their upcoming EP Noon, "Say What You Wanna," in September 2019. Noon will be released on November 15, 2019.

Musical style

The duo's music has been described as being found at "that sweet spot at the intersection of country, rock and blues".^[13] Regarded as a "countrified Civil Wars/Black Keys mix", Striking Matches employ tight vocal harmonies in their guitar-driven music.^[14]

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US Country	US Heat
Striking Matches	Release date: October 2, 2012 Label: Self-released
Morning	Release date: May 3, 2019^[16] Label: Tone Tree Music
Noon	Release date: December 6, 2019 Label: Tonal Tree Music
Night	Release date: March 27, 2020 Label: Tonal Tree Music

Music videos

Year	Video	Director
2015	"Hanging on a Lie"^[17]	Jeff Venable
2019	"Don't Hold Back"	Casey Pierce

Notes and References

1. Watch Striking Matches Shred Up 'Trouble Is as Trouble Does'. Betts. Stephen L.. 3 February 2015. Rolling Stone. 4 March 2015.
2. Web site: Striking Matches: Nothing But the Silence. Conaton. Chris. 2015-06-16. PopMatters. en. 2019-09-22. 2019-09-22. https://web.archive.org/web/20190922005935/https://www.popmatters.com/193970-striking-matches-nothing-but-the-silence-2495524796.html. live.
3. Web site: Striking Matches Release New Video, "Say What You Wanna". 1 September 2019. New Music Weekly. en-US. 2019-09-22.
4. Web site: Striking Matches Doesn't Hold Back With New Video. Holthouse. Jerry. 5 April 2019. Nashville.com. 21 September 2019. 22 September 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190922005936/https://www.nashville.com/striking-matches-doesnt-hold-back-with-new-video/. live.
5. Web site: Striking Matches - Striking Matches. AllMusic. 2019-09-22. 2019-09-22. https://web.archive.org/web/20190922005935/https://www.allmusic.com/album/striking-matches-mw0002535185. live.
6. Web site: When The Right One Comes Along: How 'Nashville' Tells Stories In Song. May 13, 2013. NPR. April 4, 2018. May 4, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150504211644/http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/05/14/183643357/when-the-right-one-comes-along-how-nashville-tells-stories-in-song. live.
7. Web site: John Oates, Striking Matches to play Ballet Ball 2015. Thanki. Juli. 12 February 2015. The Tennessean. 4 March 2015.
8. News: Nothing But The Silence, Striking Matches, review: 'slick country storytelling'. Brown. Helen. 21 Mar 2015. The Telegraph. 4 April 2018. 19 October 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161019073817/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/cdreviews/11480915/Nothing-But-The-Silence-Striking-Matches-review-slick-country-storytelling.html. live.
9. Web site: Striking Matches talk working with T Bone Burnett on their debut album. Bosso. Joe. 19 February 2015. Music Radar. 4 March 2015. 2 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402191903/http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/striking-matches-talk-working-with-t-bone-burnett-on-their-debut-album-616607. live.
10. News: Country Album Chart Report For April 1, 2015. Bjorke. Matt. April 1, 2015. Roughstock. May 4, 2015. May 13, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150513030854/http://roughstock.com/news/2015/04/33971-country-album-chart-report-april-1-2015/. live. Sales figure given here
11. Web site: Back at #1 on UK chart!. @strikingmatches. 3 April 2015. Twitter. 12 May 2015. 5 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305034113/https://twitter.com/strikingmatches/status/584000325842894848. live.
12. Web site: Striking Matches Release New EP 'Morning'. 6 May 2019. Broadway World. 21 September 2019. 22 September 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190922005936/https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Striking-Matches-Release-New-EP-Morning-20190506. live.
13. Web site: Get to know Striking Matches from SI Swimsuit Launch Week!. Hendrix. Kelsey. 18 February 2015. Sports Illustrated. 4 March 2015. 4 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304042426/http://www.si.com/swim-daily/2015/02/18/striking-matches-nashville-si-swimsuit-launch-week. live.
14. Web site: Artists to Watch in 2015 – No. 2: Striking Matches. Dukes. Billy. Taste of Country. 4 March 2015. 17 March 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150317020841/http://tasteofcountry.com/striking-matches-artists-to-watch-in-2015/. live.
15. Web site: Nothing But the Silence. Allmusic. 4 March 2015.
16. Web site: Our new EP 'Morning' is out THIS FRIDAY. Striking Matches. 1 May 2019. Facebook. 2019-09-22.
17. Web site: Striking Matches Hanging On A Lie VEVO – Yahoo Screen. Yahoo! Screen. April 2, 2015. April 3, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150403044025/https://screen.yahoo.com/hanging-lie-132945007.html. live.