lt country-rock artist Matthew Burkhart is basking in the warmth of Slow Burn, the Canadian artist’s debut album is available now.

“I’m the only one in my family with a musical bone,” Burkhart offers. “I had to be making noise at all times. Music has always helped me channel my streams of consciousness and tell stories.”

Having taken his turn playing in bands and performing live, the choice to embark on a solo offering was both a creative necessity and fitting step for the multi-talented singer/songwriter. It came together quickly, too — the seeds and sparks of each song aligning just right.

“I wrote Slow Burn during my two-week quarantine in mid-March,” Burkhart recalls of the album’s initial process. “I had taken a trip with my family down to Scottsdale, Arizona over March Break which was right as the pandemic really started raging; it was strange seeing that happen in real-time in a foreign country.

“The day after we arrived back in Toronto, the borders closed,” he continues. “I received word about having to quarantine and, all of a sudden, had two weeks of solitude to write about everything.”