Stepping stone

Dave Brooks

Ben did it for Jack.

And now Jack is going to do it for Matt.

Last month, Matt Costa got one of those life-altering phone calls

from Jack Johnson that split the path between what Costa’s career had

been and what it might soon become.

On the other end of the line, Johnson was asking the 22-year-old

former skater from Surf City if he would join the platinum recording

artist on a 36-city tour of the United States in August.

“He said that this was a really good opportunity for me,” Costa

said. “He told me that Ben Harper had done this for him, and now he

was ready to do it for me.”

Just two years earlier, Johnson, a Hawaii-born professional surfer

with one album under his belt, got a similar call from Grammy-winning

Harper about co-headlining a U.S. tour. Since then, Johnson has

developed into an international acoustical icon, famous for his

laid-back lyrics and surfer sensibilities.

Costa said he isn’t expecting his own tour with Johnson to propel

him into instant overnight success, but it could be a major

steppingstone for his career.

For whatever reason, the big news didn’t get much play during a

free in-store concert at Fingerprints Records in Belmont Shores

Sunday. About 50 people showed up to see the tall, skinny kid in

corduroy pants and a blue work shirt belt out almost a dozen songs

from his debut EP and a new album scheduled for release in May.

“If I wasn’t here playing for you guys, I’d probably be at home

playing in my room. It’s just nice to have an audience,” he told the

young crowd from his center position on the worn, plywood stage.

Standing for most of the show with his guitar slung around his

shoulder, Costa filled the small room with his distinct roots rock

sound -- his lyrics diverging from the linear story form into a more

circular, minimalist experiment.

Costa said his music is an extension of folk legends Bob Dylan and

Woody Guthrie, adapted to a newer audience for a different era.

“I just take what they’ve done and grow. I like what every artist

has contributed; inspiration just doesn’t come out of thin air,” he

said. “The art form is the output of one soaking up their

surroundings. I grew up in the 1990s and everything that I’ve seen

and been involved with comes out differently that it would have if I

had lived in another time.”

A skater since the age of 12, Costa had picked up several sponsors

and was on the path to going pro when at the age of 19, he shattered his leg attempting a crooked grind down a 10-stair handrail.

“My whole world revolved around skateboarding, and all I could

think about was ‘Omigosh, what am I going to do?’” he said.

His recovery would come slowly and he would spend his day playing

the guitar, studying songs he loved by the Kingston Trio and John

Mayall.

After hearing him play, friend Mike Townsend encouraged Costa to

write his own songs and eventually helped him record a few tracks on

a demo album he gave out to friends.

Later Costa would cross paths with Tom Dumont, guitar player for

No Doubt. The pair recorded several songs at Dumont’s Orange County

home and Costa would become the first musician released on Dumont’s

independent music label Venerable Media.

“That was a really great experience,” Costa said. “By the time we

were finished with one song, we’d have enough material for another

song.”

Dumont would eventually introduce Costa to his current music

manager Chris Fenn, who would then introduce him to someone at Jack

Johnson’s label, Brushfire Records.

“I’ve really tried to take it as it comes,” he said. “Now with the

opportunities that I have, I want to make the most of them and make

music as long as possible. The Jack [Johnson] tour is just another

step.”

It’s also a lifestyle change for the unlikely rock-star who still

lives with his parents Mikki and Mike Costa and schnauzer Angel,

sleeps in until 10 a.m. everyday and plays a few shows a week. Come

August, Matt will be playing almost nightly at 10,000-person venues.

“I think Matt will go over real well with those crowds,” Fenn

said. “For all the things Matt has accomplished, he’s trying to build

this thing slowly. He’s a hard worker and he’s dedicated to his

craft.”

Matt said a lot of the dedication he puts into his music comes

from the lessons he learned as a skateboarder.

“I try to perfect everything as much as possible. Once you have

something good, you take it out there and show it to people,” he

said. “There’s nothing to hype it but the music itself.”

* DAVE BROOKS covers City Hall. He can be reached at (714)

966-4609 or by e-mail at [email protected].