LIVE
REVIEWS Maine's
Martin Works Her Original Magic
By Steve Feeney
(As seen on PressHeraldOnline.com)
Published
November 7, 2004
Good
performers can really cast a spell over an audience. Such was the case on Friday
night when Maine-born-and-raised singer/songwriter Rebecca Martin played the Center
for Cultural Exchange.
Martin's
music has that enchanting quality that makes it almost a shame to break its magic
by applauding at the end of a song. But she, nonetheless, did get plenty of applause
during a two-hour concert full of her unique brand of refined, jazz-inflected
folk music.
Originally from Rumford Point, the 30-something singer remarked
that it was good to be both "home" and on tour. She reminisced in introducing
one tune that directly referred to her early years here. "East Andover" was a
sweetly touching piece about a young child hoping to miss the school bus and be
free for a day of adventure.
This and most of the songs in the evening's
program were taken from Martin's new CD, "People Behave Like Ballads." Though
the instrumentation was different for this performance, the tunes sounded remarkably
like the recorded versions. Martin acknowledged working long and hard to perfect
her songs and it shows in a finished product that has polish but can still strikingly
plumb the depths of personal experience.
Nearly every piece in the all-original
program was first-rate, but "Lonesome Town," with its stark imagery and plaintive
vocal, developed some particularly delicate harmonies and an overall haunting
beauty. Martin gave just the right emotional edge to lyrics full of desperation.
Accompanied
by Pete Rende on keyboards and Peck Allmond on flute, as well as her own amplified
acoustic guitar, the youthful- appearing singer drew an unsettling musical picture.
Allmond
played a bit of thumb piano by way of introduction to "It's Only Love," a nod
to the complexities of relationships that ends with the off-beat reassurance that
"this mess we've made is only love."
"If Only" also suggested a romance
out of control, as did "Old Familiar Song." The latter piece gave Martin a chance
to stretch her impressive vocal range above the embellishments of Allmond on clarinet.
Martin
offered a new piece called "You're Older" which, at first hearing, seemed to suffer
from a lack of the singer's usual poetic ambiguities. But a fine melody carried
it through.
"I'm The One" and "Lead Us" were the most instrumentally full-bodied
numbers of the evening. While Martin often works with larger ensembles, this "little"
trio could rise up out of its essentially quiet, pulsing identity when the material
required.
Martin finished the concert, as she does her new album, with
"Play For Me." As the piece observes, "There's nothing between us/but notes in
the air." This talented singer from Maine left many lovely notes hanging magically
in the air between herself and an appreciative audience.
Steve Feeney
is a free-lance writer who lives in Portland.
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Rebecca
Martin's Tour Through Portsmouth
By Alan Chase
(As seen on The Wire)
Published
November 2004
Last
Sunday evening, after an in-store performance at Bull Moose Music, Rebecca Martin,
a singer-songwriter-guitarist from New York City captivated a capacity audience
at the Press Room with an evening of music that was very deep and defied categorization.
Accompanied by the subtle keyboard work of Pete Rende and multi-instrumentalist
Peck Almond, Martin performed a wide variety of original tunes, including several
from her latest release 'People Behave Like Ballads', on MAXJAZZ records. This
performance was very enjoyable, with Martin's music having an ethereal feel that
was almost hypnotic.
As a performer, Martin has a soft but clear vocal
style that draws you in. This was noticeable from the first strains of the opening
selection, 'Out In The Rain', as her lyrical voice glided over the harmonies of
Rende's electric piano accompanied by short melodic fragments from Almond's cornet.
Throughout the set, there was a feeling of comfort and relaxation emanating from
the stage on tunes like 'Old Familiar Song', 'Lonesome Town' and 'Play For Me'.
Solos from Rende and Almond were brief, enhancing the tunes rather than extending
them. Rende would periodically add a wordless vocal to his work, giving the music
even more of a spatial sound. Almond moved between the cornet, clarinet and alto
flute with ease. His sound on each instrument was warm and fluid, acting as a
counter to martin's voice. Almond also gave a superb solo moment on the kalimba,
or African thumb piano. As the set evolved, I had a feeling of how perfectly the
music fit the rustic ambiance of the room. The looks of fascination and wonder
in the audience gave me an indication of how Martin had captured everyone's imagination.
This was amplified by a verse from the set closer, 'Play For Me': Music is for
anyone/Who’s open to hear./There's nothing between us/But notes in the air.
I
have to admit that when I first heard the CD, I wasn't overwhelmed. Many of the
tunes Martin performed at The Press Room can be heard on the CD, buy my problem
with the recording is that her songs are so open and delicate, they tend to get
buried in the sound of the slightly larger ensembles on the disc (added bass,
drums, electric guitars). There's a sameness to the recording that I didn't experience
at the show. The songs have a quiet beauty to them that does not require a lot
of extra enhancement.
During the set break, I asked Martin to describe
her music. She told me that she 'works towards creating music that expresses honesty
and that is deeply melodic'. That sums it up for me, for this was a performance
of deeply honest and melodic music. I look forward to hearing more from this very
gifted and creative musician.
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