Sometimes it is a terrible situation that spawns some of the best songs. Life is rarely a straight and easy road. But these twists and turns of fate can weave their way through musical inspiration. Our recent discovery of the song “Matter Of Fact” by Order of Silence is another example of music turning something unfortunate into something worthwhile.
The veteran duo of Graham Perry and Brad Cole had met at Belmont University back in the mid 1980’s and formed Order Of Silence with some local Nashville success. Time moved forward and the band drifted apart. Tragedy struck when former band member and friend Ernie Aguilar was murdered in Nashville, Tennessee. Perry and Cole reunited at the funeral and decided to record and release “the record the band never recorded.”
The first new single “Matter of Fact” was released last month. There’s something profoundly American about a song that sounds like it’s been pulled from the glove compartment of a ’78 Chevy pickup—dented, dust-kissed, and carrying the weight of a thousand unpaved miles and dreams.
Music video for ‘Matter of Fact” by “Matter Of Fact” by Order of Silence
From the opening twang of guitar—clean and unadorned, slicing through with a flurry of fingerpicked acoustic plucks bringing back memories that you can’t quite place. The song sets its hook quickly without ever raising its voice.
The weathered vocal takes center stage on lines like “It’s not too hard to see the warning signs. Can’t you see that he’s no win.,” weaving a yarn of unrequited love that’s as lived-in as a faded tattoo. We can all think back to a young love denied.
Backed by a sparse rhythm section that acts like a heartbeat on life support without reaching out for attention. This arrangement leaves room for the lyrics to feel and bruise. The chorus welcomes us all to join in and urge the love interest to see the err of her ways.
In a streaming landscape clogged with algorithmic earworms, Order of Silence reminds us why we all have a soft spot for American roots music in the first place: because sometimes the truth hurts like a hangnail, but damn if it doesn’t cut deep and true. Fire “Matter Of Fact” up on a backroads drive or a porch swing at dusk—either way, it’ll stick with you and make you feel something that may hurt a little but feels good at the same time.
