Matt Jaffe isn’t like other teenagers. At a time when most kids are listening to either lazy garage grunge from Burger Records, synthy EDM or overproducced pop on the radio, the 19-year-old singer-songwriter creates self-assured music that brings you back to 1970s pop-punk—a time when Elvis Costello, X and the Clash ruled. So it makes sense that he was discovered at a San Francisco open mic night by Jerry Harrison (the keyboardist/guitarist of Talking Heads). After releasing his EP Blast Off in April, Matt Jaffe and his band, the Distractions are prepping for a tour this summer, and working on a full-length album. Jaffe’s musical confidence is innate; but so is his maturity. He says, “I have developed a conviction that the best musical validation has to be internal. The entertainment industry promotes external validation as the true hallmark of success. I do appreciate when others react positively to my songs or performances, but I recognize that my most important musical goal is writing songs that are artistically satisfactory to myself.  Without that personal contentment, any broader signifiers of achievement wear pretty thin.”

Hometown and current residence: San Francisco

When did you realize you wanted to sing and perform music?

I first engaged with music by taking classical violin lessons. I value those first years of violin very highly, since I think they offered a novel perspective on playing guitar, but it wasn’t until I picked up a guitar that I felt a magnetism to writing and performing. I learned my first chords from watching David Byrne’s hands in Stop Making Sense, and since that film is so charged with energy and verve, it also compelled me to perform. The first songs I played in public with a guitar were “Heaven” and “Psycho Killer.” I credit Talking Heads and the jaw-dropping experience of watching that concert film with not only teaching me some fundamentals on guitar, but also convincing me of the unparalleled joy of live performance.

What's the first song you ever wrote?

I wrote a number of songs before I knew how to play guitar that were really more twisted nursery rhymes than songs. I don’t discredit their importance in my growth, but I probably ought to discredit them as real songs. The earliest song I wrote was called “What The Birds Would Say.” It was written from both a figurative and literal bird’s eye view, trying to objectively portray human trashing of the environment. The commentary was probably quite unfocused, but I think the youthful innocence may have translated well into the intended alien perspective of the birds. Musically, I also capitalized on my naiveté on the guitar. Since I wasn’t particularly familiar with chords or how they fit together into a progression, the melody and chords flow in a way that would be tough for me to replicate today. Now, I’m a little more aware of music theory (probably still an amateur, compared to many), but it means it’s tougher to have serendipitous melodic accidents.

Who were your childhood heroes in music?

The two bands I really associate with my falling for rock music are The Rolling Stones and U2. Admittedly, I have complicated feelings about both groups now, since neither has released anything I’ve really loved in quite some time. But I am grateful to both for getting me hooked on guitar-driven music. Notably, The Joshua Tree was the first album I remember really taking notice of, and I think it holds up remarkably well, even as latter-day U2 has gotten a little bombastic.

However, the bands that really get me going now, and have been a more direct inspiration for my own music, are largely from the UK and the USA and got started in the late ‘70s. The Clash, X, Elvis Costello, The Replacements, The Pogues, to name a few. Also, recently, I’ve been exploring a lot of earlier country music, since I think it brings an elemental approach to songwriting that I really admire, and I think mirrors punk rock in a way. Hank Williams, Johnny Cash and Gram Parsons are some of my favorite country singer/songwriters. All these musicians embrace a certain minimalism that I strive to emulate. Their arrangements aren’t always spare, but the songwriting usually has a directness that I really dig.

As the story goes, you were discovered by Jerry Harrison. How did you meet?

I was doing a school project on Talking Heads and learned that Jerry lives in the same town as I do. After running into him by chance, he was gracious enough to grant me an interview for the project I was working on. After the interview and a few more random encounters, he saw me performing a few times at a local open mic and suggested that we work together.

Are you a big reader? What books have had a big impact on your music?

Some novels have had a big impact, but lately I’ve been especially inspired by poetry and graphic novels. Some poets I really dig are Frank O’Hara, Allen Ginsburg, Pablo Neruda and Peter Gizzi. Poetry and song lyrics have a weird relationship. A lot of people have tried to describe them as synonymous, and that can be true, but I think they occupy separate domains, and a lot distinct rules apply to them. For instance, songs can disguise crappy poetry with beautiful melodies. That being said, I think they are related, and poetry has been a great inspiration.

On the graphic novel front, Alan Moore, Frank Miller, Dave Gibbons, Art Spiegelman, and Reinhard Kleist have been some favorites. Graphic novels haven’t had as direct an influence on my songwriting, but they have forced me to reevaluate the nature of storytelling. Most of my songs don’t contain linear stories, but I am interested in writing more narrative tunes, as it’s more of a tradition in country and folk music, and I am grateful for the lessons in storytelling that I’ve garnered from these graphic novels.

If you could be or do anything else what would it be?

I would love to be a filmmaker. My commitment to music has largely precluded me from experimenting with film, but I hope to work in film more in the future. Film seems to afford creators the same kind of energy that music allows. I have had similar sensations watching films and listening to music, because their temporal qualities are reminiscent of one another. Also, film incorporates so many different media (including music!) in a really intriguing way. A lot of my musical creativity happens on a very personal level, whereas most film of any substantive production value requires the cooperative artistry of lots of people. This reliance on others is a little nerve-wracking, but I’d like to try it.

What's the craziest thing a fan has ever done for you?

The first time I saw a cover version of one of our songs (“I Wanna Be Cruel”), I was pretty blown away. Since I got interested in performing by being motivated to learn and perform Talking Heads songs, it was very touching to think that someone would feel compelled to do the same with one of my tunes. Having that effect—making music that encourages people to make their own—is probably the best outcome I could hope for.

Who are your "gods"?

Well, I’d probably have to organize them into a more Greco-Roman deity system, since there are far too many for the Judeo-Christian one. I would say Joe Strummer is my Zeus. I don’t know how much more of this extended metaphor I can manage, but David Byrne, Elvis Costello, John Doe, Johnny Cash, Townes Van Zandt, Ted Leo, Bob Dylan, and Paul Westerberg all rank high in my pantheon, leaving many unnamed for the sake of brevity.

What do you want to do before you're 25?

We have developed a strong following in parts of Latin America, owing largely to a few songs with Spanish lyrics or references to Spanish-language authors. While there are many areas of the world I hope to visit for concerts, it would be particularly special to tour in some of these countries, like Argentina and Mexico. We have to take gradual steps, since we have yet to even tour the US extensively, but it would be a thrill for me to perform in these countries, since they’ve not only been a well of inspiration, but have also responded favorably to our music.