Photo courtesy Houla Entertainment
With their glorification of showy, melismatic technique over creative innovation and, yes, subtlety, there can be no doubt that popular TV shows such as "The Voice" and "American Idol" are primary suspects in the ongoing industry-boosted degradation of contemporary popular music. So I guess we should be thankful for performers like Matthew Schuler, a Pennsylvania singer and former contestant on “The Voice” who writes some of his own songs, sets his own course and boasts a style deeply rooted in the African-American church. Yes, there should definitely be an international moratorium on future covers of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" — Schuler’s most famous selection — but even with that hoary, overdone anthem, Schuler manages to find unplundered melodic touches and stirring, heartfelt inflections. Hallelujah for that.
Matthew Schuler comes to The Tin Pan on Jan. 5 at 8 p.m.
$15 to $20.
