We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Matthew Rojas a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Matthew, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

This is a hard question to answer! Right now, I’m finishing up my degree for a bachelor’s in Music Industry Studies, and that’s pretty meaningful. However, as meaningful as that is, I think it would have to be my latest music release, “Spirit in the Ground,” with my solo project, Beyond the Marsh.

Beyond the Marsh originally started releasing music in early 2017 under the name “Matthew Rojas,” but changed to the new name as of 2021. The music is a mix of my favorite sounds and genres, pulling influence from metal bands such as Tool, and Metallica, as well as classical composers like Rachmaninoff, and Brahms. “Spirit in the Ground” took over a year to write, record, produce, and release, and many of its songs are actually older than that. This project is super meaningful to me because it was the first project I did entirely on my own after completing the music theory and history aspects of my degree, so I felt so much more in control of the music. I am a metalhead at heart so there are definitely some heavier parts on the release, but there are also more ambient and spacey sections as well. “Spirit in the Ground” really is a fun release, and if you’re looking for something new to listen to, I highly recommend it!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Matthew Rojas, and I write, record, produce, and perform music. My two most notable projects at the moment are Hellfire Mafia, a bluesy, groovy, metal band, and Beyond the Marsh, my solo project, which is inspired by a little bit of everything. I also record and produce songs for local indie artists, and I’m currently finishing up my bachelor’s degree in Music Industry Studies. After I’m finished with my degree in the coming months, I’d like to focus more on recording local artists and starting an independent record label.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

I think that exploring, discovering, and supporting new artists is the absolute best thing society can do to build a healthy creative ecosystem. The ability to try new things, and sharing cool finds with family and friends will help keep any art, music, media, etc. alive and healthy for a long time. I unfortunately see the opposite happen more often then not (and I’m guilty of it sometimes too): where we’d rather listen or watch the same few things over and over again instead of branching out and trying to discover what else is out there. What happens when our favorite bands and artists inevitably stop touring or creating? Cover bands are fun sometimes, but they’re not the future. Finding new artists and supporting their work will ensure the survival and evolution or our favorite genres.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I absolutely love the book, “Real Artists Don’t Starve,” by Jeff Goins. The book offers quite a bit of advice for creatives as far as marketing themselves, making connections in their respective industries, and keeping their work relevant. In my opinion, it’s a must read for any artist of any medium who’s looking to start getting paid for their work.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.beyondthemarsh.bandcamp.com
• Instagram: @beyondthemarsh_band
• Other: Portfolio: https://mattrojas-music.squarespace.com/

Image Credits
Miranda Galan; Erik Bredthauer; Carlos Sagahon; Matthew Rojas