Southern New Jersey’s Matt DeAngelis has clearly been listening to the epic rock of the 1970s and 1980s, because his newest single, “Speak For A Moment”, is straight out of another era. It’s a catchy tune bolstered by retro rock instrumentation and clean, tight production.
DeAngelis describes honing his craft as a songwriter since the age of 8 and now, in his 20s, a childhood spent on hooks and verses is clearly paying off. Although his Spotify bio makes extensive mention of facing the challenges of life such as mental health issues and climate change, “Speak For A Moment” hits like a ray of sonic sunshine with exuberant guitars and synthesizers and a lively percussion section.
DeAngelis also has what can only be described as a great voice. A clear, energetic tenor with a good sense of diction and stylistic inflection. His delivery of the chorus lyrics, “speak for a moment, sing for a day” is upbeat, euphoric even, and as much of an earworm as anything. His delivery of the rest of the song demonstrates great vocal control and a developed feel for injecting emotion into lyrics where appropriate.
Although “Speak For A Moment” isn’t going to hit any mainstream pop charts, it has the makings of a rock playlist darling. I wouldn’t be surprised for a moment if DeAngelis were able to replicate the success of other groups mining the past for inspiration such as Steel Panther and Greta Van Fleet. I also wouldn’t be surprised if we start seeing Matt DeAngelis’ name show up in the credits for other artists – this man is a talented songwriter, and whether he decides to stick with rock for his own material or not, he clearly has the chops to create a hit.
Listen to "Speak For A Moment" on Spotify here -
You can check out Matt Deangelis’ website here: