Bio

2000: Origin of Sandzstone

The earliest documented point in the story is 2000, when Matthew Simak wrote and recorded his first Sandzstone material. Simak says he had taught himself drums as a child, later bought his first guitar from a pawn shop, and subsequently learned bass, harmonica, mandolin, vocals, and recording/mixing techniques. 

Simak then assembled Sandzstone as an actual band, rather than initially conceiving it solely as a solo project. According to his biography, the band’s music received multiple instances of airplay on Pittsburgh’s 105.9 The X. The original lineup lasted approximately a year before breaking up. 

Sandzstone was originally a band and only later became primarily a one-man recording project.

The first commercially documented release is Soul Assembly Required, dated December 12, 2000. Apple Music currently lists it as a five-song, 19-minute rock EP. 

The original

Soul Assembly Required

material

The 2023 Soul Assembly Required (Super Deluxe Edition) provides substantially more evidence about the early catalog. It contains 26 tracks and runs approximately 83 minutes, effectively expanding the documented record of the 2000-era material. 

Individual recordings from this period include:

• “Simple”

• “Tiger’s Tale”

• “Over & Over”

• “Uptight”

• “Can’t Explain”

• “Why”

• “Shame”

• “The Time Traveler”

• “Simple (Demo)”

The official Sandzstone site specifically identifies “Simple,” “Tiger’s Tale,” “Over & Over,” “Uptight,” and “Can’t Explain” as songs associated with the early material. 

“Simple” is particularly significant because Simak describes it as one of the first songs he wrote, while “Tiger’s Tale” is described as having been written while watching The Matrix. 

Apple Music independently catalogs “Tiger’s Tale” and the other songs as Sandzstone recordings, giving the early catalog a stronger documentary trail than the original biography alone. 

2001 onward: From band to solo project

The original band broke up approximately one year after its formation. From that point forward, Simak continued Sandzstone largely by himself. 

This appears to be the defining structural change in Sandzstone’s history.

Rather than replacing the original lineup with a new permanent band, Simak developed Sandzstone into a multi-instrumentalist recording project. His current biographies describe him as performing the instruments himself and handling the writing, recording, and production. 

The project’s sound continued to draw from blues and rock. Simak’s published list of influences includes Soundgarden, Chris Cornell, Big Wreck, ZZ Top, Joe Satriani, Led Zeppelin, the Black Crowes, Eddie Vedder, Temple of the Dog, Pearl Jam, Mad Season, Mother Love Bone, Alice in Chains, Audioslave, Jerry Cantrell, Velvet Revolver, and the Smashing Pumpkins. 

That influence list gives a considerably clearer picture of Sandzstone’s musical context than simply calling it “rock.”

The 105.9 The X connection

This is one of the most interesting pieces of Sandzstone’s early history.

Simak’s biography repeatedly states that Sandzstone’s music was played multiple times on 105.9 The X, Pittsburgh’s alternative-rock station. The same claim appears on Simak’s Slaps profile, the official Sandzstone website, and the Sandzstone YouTube channel description. 

More importantly, there is now an identifiable artifact supporting the later relationship with the station: the Sandzstone YouTube archive contains a video titled “Sandzstone (Featuring Matthew Simak) - Revv-olution commercial on 105.9 The X.” 

That doesn’t independently prove the extent of the band’s 2000-era airplay, but it does establish that Sandzstone had a documented connection with 105.9 The X during the later “Revv-olution” period.

Simak has stated that Sandzstone received multiple airplays on Pittsburgh’s 105.9 The X during its early period; the project’s later “Revv-olution” campaign also produced a promotional spot associated with the station.

2017: Online revival

A major second chapter begins around 2017.

The Sandzstone YouTube channel was created on January 13, 2017, according to channel metadata. Its stated purpose was to present music videos, behind-the-scenes material, and unreleased music. 

The channel description reiterates the history of the project: Simak says he wrote and recorded the first album in 2000, formed Sandzstone, experienced the band’s breakup approximately a year later, and subsequently continued making music independently. 

This is significant because the YouTube channel effectively became a second home for the Sandzstone project, alongside streaming services.

The Slaps profile also dates Simak’s account to December 31, 2017, suggesting that the 2017–18 period was an intentional return to releasing and promoting the music. 

2018: The “Revv-olution”

The revival became explicit with “Start a Revvolution,” released January 2, 2018. Apple Music identifies it as a Sandzstone rock single. 

The song was more than simply another single: Simak’s contemporary artist biography described 2018 as “the year of the Revv-olution.” 

The project subsequently released Revvolution. The original version is listed as a seven-song release, while a later Revvolution (Deluxe Edition) expanded it to 11 songs. Apple Music dates the deluxe edition to May 2, 2023. 

The existence of the 105.9 The X “Revv-olution commercial” suggests that this period involved an organized promotional campaign rather than merely uploading an old recording to a streaming service. 

2023: Major archival expansion

2023 was arguably the most productive year in Sandzstone’s documented catalog.

On May 2, Revvolution (Deluxe Edition) was released, expanding the seven-song original to 11 songs. 

On May 10, Sandzstone released “Roam.” 

On May 17, the project released Soul Assembly Required (Super Deluxe Edition), containing 26 songs and approximately 83 minutes of music. 

This release is particularly significant historically because it appears to transform the early 2000-era Sandzstone material into a much more extensive archival collection.

The 2023 catalog also includes Lost and Uncut Demos. “Can’t Explain,” for example, is explicitly identified by Audiomack as part of Lost and Uncut Demos, with a release date of May 10, 2023. 

The result is that Sandzstone’s 2023 catalog isn’t simply “new music.” It represents a large-scale retrospective of recordings accumulated across the project’s history, alongside newer material.

The YouTube era

The online-video side of Sandzstone deserves its own section in a future article.

The project’s channel describes itself as containing music videos, behind-the-scenes footage and unreleased music, with Simak stating that he wrote, performed and produced the music. The channel description also credits Simak and his wife, Marguerite, with editing and producing the music videos. 

The channel’s catalog includes videos associated with songs such as:

• “The Time Traveler”

• “Signs”

• “Gone Too Far”

• “The King Will Rise”

• “Hey Mama”

• “New Beginning”

For example, “Signs” has an identifiable official music-video listing on YouTube, while “Hey Mama” exists as a 2023 demo video featuring resonator guitar. 

The channel metadata currently reports more than 100 videos, making the video catalog a substantial part of the project’s history rather than a minor promotional supplement. 

One caveat: third-party YouTube analytics sites report subscriber figures that should not automatically be treated as authoritative. The underlying channel itself is the better source for channel statistics.

2025:

Tomorrow

Sandzstone’s most recent major album is ** Tomorrow **, released May 3, 2025.

Apple Music lists it as an eight-song rock album with a running time of approximately 19 minutes, credited to Matthew Simak Productions. 

The release was preceded by “Gone Too Far”, issued April 27, 2025. Apple Music lists the single as a one-song rock release. 

The fact that Tomorrow arrived in 2025 is historically important: Sandzstone was still producing new material roughly 25 years after the original 2000 recordings.

Period

Character

2000-2001

Original Pittsburgh band; first recordings; reported 105.9 The X airplay

2001-2016

Predominantly independent/solo recording period

2017-2023

Online revival, Revv-olution,new releases and major archival work

2025-present

Continued new recording activity, including Tomorrow