Interview | Jame Moorfield

Jame Moorfield, a growing name for a growing producer, recently released his LP, Elsewheres, which is comprised of a series of thoughtful, dreamy tracks that offer careful precision in the layering beats. From tracks such as; ‘Beauty’s Where you Find It,’ ‘Trapped on Track,’ ‘Elsewheres’ and ‘The Heart You Find,’ the listener is taken into Jame Moorfield’s colorful blends of starry-eyed sounds.   

 

Matthew Rea, a technically trained painter, graduated Summa Cum Laude at Virginia Commonwealth University and is currently an Instructor at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond. He has held exhibitions of his own, lending the same attention to detail to music as he is precise in his brushstrokes on canvas. His other project, Museum District, sounds like you’re about to get stopped at the front of an exhibit at the Smithsonian and get asked, ‘are you even on the guestlist?’

Although Matthew Rea is already known in the art world, he is now creating the same prestige for himself as ‘Jame Moorfield,’ intending to go far and ‘Elsewheres.’ So let’s get his thoughts on his new LP, and why listeners should be looking into his work. 

What were some of your thoughts first starting out in music? 

Music has such a connection, and it’s a rock for a lot of issues that people are going through. It’s something that is constant. 

Looking back, it wasn’t until sophomore year of college (7 years ago) that I started to make music and at first I used ‘FL Studio.’ Soon after that I started to just chatting with people on SoundCloud and send music around. I thought this was something cool to try and really push for. The music scene in Richmond is amazing but the dance scene is pretty small. 

This was more of a passion and less of a means for financial sustainability. I’ve been continuing to produce music. My sound has transformed and changed as the years go on. 

What would you say are some themes and concepts with your new LP?

I had started with playing around with the idea of writing another full-length project in April. I put out a full-length album a couple of years ago after I lost a close friend, and at the time, I used it to stay busy. I wanted to see if I could create an album that could evoke an emotion of what I’m going through at the time. 

Cathartic – the first album was more cathartic and so was the process to a certain extent. The second are the expectations I held to myself. I thought it was time for me to break those expectations. 

Some of the themes in this LP revolve around what I think of as my home, and about leaving that home. I’m at a point in my life where I’m in my mid-20s – a lot of my friends are moving away and people are taking different career paths. There’s a lot of uncertainty and concern and different ideas of what is expected of me. 

Like a mirror image to face yourself, and where you’re going? 

Yes, and when I was done there were more questions than answers. That was an okay feeling that I am now just coming to terms with. 

Now that you’re growing your sound, who are some artists that have inspired you? 

The scene in Richmond – there’s a lot of different parties that are popping up. There’s a lot of different groups of people bringing artists from out of town. The growth is inspiring. I am so thankful to be a part of that experience. 

I aspire to be more to be like a sound like that of some labels. Labels like; Classic Music Company, Mad House Records, Defected Records, Razor N Tape and Toy Tonics. I’m aspiring to make a sound like rather like specific artist. 

It’s usually important to create these labels to give other artists a platform. It’s a great tool that international artists have at their disposals. It can create careers through just a single release.  There have been bedrooms hit singles that have turned into greats from this. 

What are some local insights that you would have for the growing Richmond dance scene? 

A lot of these artists are based out of house shows and underground spaces. Here in Richmond, there are a lot of venues but there are strict liquor laws. So, everything has to act like a restaurant or it closes early. Those restrictions have started to have people think outside the box on what they want to do musically and what they want to do for the community. 

 

There’s almost something romantic about making music in a small community and growing it, right?