ONETIME Boo Radleys singer, songwriter and guitarist and also Wichita Records’ Brave Captain, Martin Carr, is now working with Sonic Cathedral on a follow-up to his most recent album, 2017’s New Shapes Of Life.
And here’s the first release of this new partnership: the bright, breezy pop of “Flames”, completely showcasing Martin’s way with a melody, all entwined with leftfield dub and electronica sprinklings and textures. But, of course: what else would one expect from the man behind the majestic “Lazarus”?
“I wrote it on the guitar, it’s very simple, then I started throwing sounds at it,” Martin explains. “I love to make collages and my music production method is identical. I move stuff around; I cut and bend and turn.
“I’m not after any particular sound or style, I try to be disciplined in the studio, but I wouldn’t want anything to dampen the thrill of inspiration that moves so fast, you can’t catch it all.”
As far the song’s lyrical angle goes, Martin confesses, somewhat surprisingly: “I’m a terrible communicator. I’m self-absorbed and hardly have time for anything that lies beyond the front door.”
With work well underway on a new record, he’s also launching a Bandcamp subscription service, in which fans can hear work-in-progress demos; exclusive, live-streamed performances; artwork, a regular magazine of memories and jottings entitled New Shapes and, now Adele has finally shifted her tremendous demands away from pressing plants, actual records.
Oh, and he’s also on tour with fellow Cestrians The Charlatans like, right now, criss-crossing the island with them on their greatest hits tour, where you’ll find him riding out with his new backing band What Future: bassist Gaz Williams, drummer Bernie Plain and keyboard player Matthew Frederick. Those dates are as follows:
Thursday, November 25th, Buckley, Tivoli;
Friday, November 26th, Bristol, O2 Academy;
Saturday, November 27th, Birmingham, O2 Academy;
Monday, November 29th, Bexhill, De La Warr Pavilion;
Tuesday, November 30th, Bournemouth, O2 Academy;
Thursday, December 2nd, Oxford, O2 Academy;
Friday, December 3rd, Cambridge, Corn Exchange;
Saturday, December 4th, Manchester, O2 Victoria Warehouse;
Monday, December 6th, Lincoln, The Engine Shed;
Wednesday, December 8th, Liverpool, Invisible Wind Factory;
Thursday, December 9th, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, O2 City Hall;
Friday, December 10th, London, Brixton, O2 Academy;
Monday, December 12th, Norwich, UEA LCR;
Wednesday, December 14th, Exeter, University Great Hall;
Friday, December 16th, Nottingham, Rock City;
Saturday, December 17th, Leeds, O2 Academy;
Sunday, December 18th, Glasgow, O2 Academy;
Monday, December 20th, Aberdeen, Music Hall;
Tuesday, December 21st, Edinburgh, Corn Exchange.
Martin Carr’s “Flames” will be out across all digital streaming platforms tomorrow, November 26th; connect with Martin elsewhere on tinterweb at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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