Matt Hires began his musical career as a teenager in Tampa, playing songs for his family at Christmas and turning a get-together at his brother’s house in St. Augustine into an impromptu house show.
On Friday, Hires will bring his singer/songwriter act to High Dive. The show starts at 9 p.m. with local opening acts Benny Cannon and Vane.
Hires, 27, played on the same Gainesville stage during his national tour in 2010, when the venue was called Common Grounds.
Since then, Hires has been off the road working on his unnamed sophomore album, which will be released within the next year.
Friday’s concert is part of a mini tour around his home state of Florida, which also includes stops in Tallahassee and Orlando.
The set list includes songs off of the new record that have never been played live.
In comparison to his first album from 2009, “Take Us to the Start,” Hires wanted more of a pop/rock sound, more of an edge and more honesty in the new CD.
He said he feels like he achieved that.
In 2008, Hires signed with Atlantic Records and became the first act on F-Stop Music, a smaller label under Atlantic’s larger umbrella. He was discovered when Gregg Nadel, one of Atlantic’s executives, heard Hires playing “Honey, Let Me Sing You a Song” on one of his MySpace videos. Since then, the song has been used on multiple soundtracks including the movie “When In Rome” and ABC’s TV show “Cougar Town.”
Hires describes his music as “pop/rock with a singer/songwriter heart.” He draws inspiration from Tom Petty, Bob Dylan and The Killers.
In middle school, he saw his first concert, Dashboard Confessional and Saves the Day. Dashboard Confessional’s “honest and angsty” lyrics inspired his own songwriting, and led him to more classic artists.
His guilty-pleasure listening is Taylor Swift’s most recent chart-topper “We are Never Ever Getting Back Together.”
In addition to guitar and vocal talent, Hires also plays bass, banjo and harmonica and can “noodle around” on the piano.
His goals for the future are ambitious. He says he is aiming for world domination — by music, of course.
Tickets for Friday’s show can be purchased at www.highdivegville.com for $10 in advance or $12 on the day of show, with a $2 charge at the door for fans under 21.
Matt Hires, a 27-year-old singer/songwriter from Tampa, Fla., will perform at High Dive on Friday. The show starts at 9 p.m. with two local opening acts, Benny Cannon and Vane.
