We recently connected with Matthew Rojas and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Matthew, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

The first time I knew I wanted to pursue music professionally was when I was in the sixth grade. Middle school is hard enough as it is, and a mixture of personal and school things helped me to find an escape in music. Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, I loved these bands, and learned how to play songs from all of them…on piano! (I didn’t yet own a guitar).

During some of my lunches at school, I would practice on my drama teacher’s old Baldwin upright. Eventually, other kids started to watch and it became less about practice and more about performing – which I loved at the time, let’s be real! Seeing how my playing had a positive effect on my peers, I grew curious about music and started writing songs of my own – which never stopped.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Matthew Rojas, I’m a high school music teacher by day and a heavy metal musician by night. I started my band, Beyond the Marsh, as a solo project when I was fifteen, and released my first full length album, “Every Waking Minute,” at age seventeen. After high school, I joined my uncle’s band, Hellfire Mafia, in which I was the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, and producer. It was here that I cut my teeth in a live setting and got the chance to play alongside bands such as Flotsam and Jetsam, September Mourning, and Powerman 5000. Throughout my time in Hellfire Mafia, I pursued a Music Industry degree and graduated with my bachelor’s in 2022.

My goal with Beyond the Marsh has always been to play heavy and fun music, but also to stand out and make something original. My influences range from Metallica and Tool to Chopin and Duke Ellington. Mixing my personal tastes with those of the drummer and bassist, we’ve been able to start creating some really interesting heavy music that we’re all excited to release within the coming year.

Although Beyond the Marsh as an entity is almost a decade old, it wasn’t until this past summer that it has gained its other members. Needless to say, we’re looking forward to playing some shows this fall.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I’m sure I’m beating a dead horse by saying that the pandemic really threw things off. A lot of small studios and music production companies shut down during the time I needed an internship for my degree, meaning my original plan of doing studio work until I could open my own became much harder to achieve. Instead, I got an internship elsewhere and chose to teach private instruction for piano, bass, and guitar instead. Not only did I find out that I enjoy being a teacher, but this helped me learn so much more about my instruments, music theory, and people in general. I love teaching, and that’s something I couldn’t have discovered if I had gone through with my original plans to work in a studio.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

As a teacher, my biggest goal is instilling a love for music in my high school students. I want them to be able to listen to all kinds of music with intention and joy, and hopefully pick up instruments themselves. I have this goal as an artist as well. I want to write music that is unique, worth discovering, and most of all, can help cultivate people’s love for music.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://beyondthemarsh.bandcamp.com/
• Instagram: @beyondthemarsh_band
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondthemarsh

Image Credits

Necro Blanca Photography

Miranda Galan