It’s been over a decade since Matt Nathanson first heard his single “Car Crash” on the radio but that hasn’t lessened his excitement to hear his songs being played.

“The first time you hear it it’s like, ‘Oh God, that guitar sounds terrible. I’m speeding up. Why does it sound that way?’ And the second time you settle in and you’re like, ‘This is rad! I like this,’” he told CBS Local.

While in New York recently Nathanson heard another track of his, “Come On Get Higher” while food shopping.

“The other day I was in Manhattan at Whole Foods and ‘Come On Get Higher’ came on the radio,” he recalled. “I’m sitting in Whole Foods and the song starts. I stood in the cereal aisle at Whole Foods under the speaker listening. It was a nice moment of appreciation and it was perfectly loud where I was standing so I was experiencing it as people were walking around getting their Corn Flakes and Kashi.”

While Nathanson said he didn’t ask shoppers if they knew who the singer was, he admitted that he liked hearing his song.

“I totally had a moment where I was like, ‘Dude, I’m totally into this,’” he said. “It’s fun to appreciate the stuff you’ve created.”

Nathanson confessed that he doesn’t hear his music played often and while the initial shock tends to wear off he still likes to hear his singles.

“If there’s a certain amount of time that goes by you can sort of stomach yourself,” he said. “I don’t need to ever hear my records again. You live it, you make it and then you give it away to people. That’s the job of the record and the artist.”

Matt Nathanson’s newest single is “Modern Love,” the title track off his latest album available on Amazon.

- Annie Reuter CBS Local