What I would like to do someday is break even — Lorrie Matheson

For Lorrie Matheson, the pressure is off.

Most local musicians are worried about generating buzz (whatever that is), meeting the right people (whoever they are) or making a name (whatever that means). With an almost two-decade music career under his belt, Matheson’s concerns are far more pedestrian. Where is he going to play, who is he going to play with and how is he going to make his next record?

“I’m so glad I don’t have to worry about being cool anymore,” he says. “I can just do whatever I want to do.”

Not surprisingly, like many artists who shift the focus from making it to making music, Matheson has created his strongest material yet. His glorious new long-player, In Vein, is an intensely personal and emotionally resonant record. It’s also the most complete portrait of Matheson as an artist to date. And as much as his third solo album is the result of his new musical outlook, it’s also informed by a lifetime of playing and recording.

“When I started, I was just like everybody else,” he says. “I wanted to be a rock star. I wanted to be famous. I wanted all the girls to love me, and I wanted the money and the cars and all that kind of stuff. It just becomes more about getting to the heart of things rather than trying to make some girl’s panties wet.”

Getting to the heart of things is quite literally what In Vein is all about. Matheson had worked up his latest batch of songs and realized that without any conscious deliberation, they all had something in common. It became a concept record in hindsight.

“There is a line in one of the songs, ‘All this will be in vein,’” he says. “It’s a song about essentially a heroin addiction. I just thought, looking over the whole collection of songs that we wound up using, there was a lot of heart, lots of things about addiction. It just sort of dawned on me that either you take it literally as blood or metaphorically as love, the heart — all that sort of thing — it courses through your veins.”

As Matheson’s fans might suspect, the title isn’t the only bit of clever wordplay on the album. He eschews the idea that he’s a poet, but the man sure can turn a phrase. On the album closer, he croons, “I may not find the answers in this beautiful bottle, but when I get to the bottom, I hope to forget the question.” It’s an elegant bit of honesty, tempered with a cynicism (or realism, if you prefer) that only comes with age. It’s also typical of the songwriting on the album — smart, evocative and direct. It may not be Matheson’s most instantly catchy album, but it is certainly in the running for his best.

“Every song that I write comes from a personal perspective, but a few years ago I realized that I was trying too hard to be clever,” he says. “It was just sort of this realization that I shouldn’t try to couch the meaning of songs. I should try to say them and be as direct as far as my feelings and thoughts about the subject.”

TEXT BREAKER: HEART OF A BAND

Matheson’s writing gives the album a strong foundation, but the end result owes much to the team of musicians he assembled. Jay Crocker was tapped to produce, and he brought his backing band along to the studio. Drummer Chris Dadge, who backed Matheson on his last album, returns, as does guitarist Brooker Buckingham, who shared the stage with Matheson during his days with indie darlings Fire Engine Red. With those session players on board, there was no chance that In Vein was going to sound like a typical roots singer-songwriter record. Fleshing out the songs with horn players and a vibraphone gave Matheson a chance to play fast and loose with genres. It’s a risky move, which Matheson acknowledges, but he would much rather push himself than play it safe.

“I just thought I shouldn’t worry about what other people think, because ultimately, I’m doing this for my own edification,” he says. “It’s not like I’m trying to write hit songs for Top 40 radio.”

This last statement is delivered with conviction. It’s not the posturing of someone pretending to be an artist. Nor is it the battle cry of self-indulgence. It’s a truth that has been learned through hours onstage, on the road and in the studio.

“I make the music for myself with the idea that people who are somewhat like-minded will appreciate it,” he says. “They are not going to like it because I’m trying to please them. Hopefully, they will like it because they see things sort of the same way that I see them.”

Of course, this artistic approach, while personally satisfying, isn’t always conducive to a flourishing business model.

“What I would like to do someday is break even. I think that would be really awesome,” he says. “As far as accolades and all that kind of stuff, I think it just doesn’t matter ”

Until he breaks even, Matheson will just keep doing what he does — and if In Vein is any indication, he’ll just do it better. “I have so much experience now,” he says, “just because I’m too dumb to stop.”