Monday, April 21, 2025

Genre-defying songwriter Isaac Martinez lands #1 Most Added album on college radio Folk charts with “Ten Country Songs.”

Ironically titled record co-produced by Grammy®-winner Jerry Ordonez (Bon Iver, Waxahatchee). See “Time Passes” video now.

+++


Isaac Martinez as photographed by Johnny Singels

 +++ 

PLAY, POST & SHARE 

Isaac Martinez | “Time Passes”


+++

“And time passes on your favorite music, 100 years from now, will they be singing the songs your parents sang or will they even remember how?”

 Isaac Martinez, “Time Passes”

 +++

 “I was playing ‘Time Passes’ at open mics while my wife Zoe was pregnant with our first child,” Isaac Martinez explains. “She wanted a recording that sounded as good as it did live.”

 This request led Martinez to the studio. The results are glorious. The warm atmosphere created by the song’s heavenly piano touches, combined with Martinez’s close-miked vocal and underpinned by an insistent snare propelling his overdubbed harmonies, is absolutely haunting.

 +++

Isaac Martinez
Ten Country Songs
Out Now
(*! Records)


 Streaming Link:
STREAM FULL LP
  
+++
 
Track Listing:
 
01. No One Wants to Drink Alone
02. Time Passes (VIDEO)
03. Killer
04. Infinite Water Glitch (LISTEN)
05. Whiskey
06. Lily White Dove
07. People Problems
08. Cedar Road
09. Poppy
10. One
 
+++

Isaac Martinez | About


“I’m working to become a better person for my wife and son. Music is the major side quest, you know?”

Denver-based musician Isaac Martinez is the man behind this candid remark. It is a compelling truth about the reality of life for any successful father who is also a songwriter seeking success.

Summing up Martinez’s ceaselessly creative and complicated career is nearly impossible. He began composing songs at the age of 11, appropriated the guitar his father had bought for his sister soon after, and was studying the instrument in a conservatory by high school.

Martinez is prolific to the point of confusion, and his tendency to obsessively work on material for years in a multitude of genres, then release it, and then mysteriously wipe it from the internet, is part of his artistic charm.

Regardless, some tunes are too important not to last.

For the first time, following years of operating under aliases, more than a dozen DIY releases since 2016 alone, and a detour to Los Angeles that spawned a Brockhampton and Beatles-inspired band that had just enough momentum after four years to justify an implosion, Martinez has finally released the work he is most proud of.

He should be.

10 Country Songs is the first record that Martinez feels worthy of being dropped everywhere under what he refers to as his “government” name. The album was produced by Martinez alongside the A-list assistance of engineers Andy Flebbe (Green Day) and Grammy®-winner Jerry Ordonez (Bon Iver, Waxahatchee).

True to Martinez’s eclectic nature, the album’s title is a tiny red herring as the record isn’t even necessarily ten country songs.

It is an amalgam of the unsorted and ubiquitous intellectual and emotional influences on Martinez (including those of his wife, son, and relationship with God) and his just-as-many musical ones. It represents what matters most to Martinez, i.e., not “side quests.”

Your eyes might glaze over while listening to Martinez gush about influences on his sound as disparate as Shoegaze, Garage Rock, IDM, Alternative, Americana, Math Rock, Hip-Hop, Pop, and, yes, Country. It’s a lot to take in. Better to have your eyes water while listening to Martinez’s music. It’s also a lot to take in but in the best way.

“How much can I tell you to show you I love you? Anything I could say! How much could I give to you to show you I meant it? Anything God could make!,” Martinez sings on one of the album’s stellar standout tracks “Infinite Water Glitch”.

The song would ring true as a tear-jerking love tune on its face, but when taken with Martinez’s previously stated family priorities, his commitment to his instrument, and the acknowledgment of faith that led it to your ears, this composition becomes world-class.

“I believe musical ability is a God-given gift granted generously amongst the people,” he explains. “It is like a soup of truths that overtakes an entire sense.”

Martinez’s wife Zoe offers some truth soup, too. Without her insistence, what turns out to be one of Martinez’s signature songs may not have even been made.

“I was playing ‘Time Passes’ at open mics while Zoe was pregnant with our first child. She wanted a recording that sounded as good as it did live.”

This request led Martinez to the studio. The results are glorious. The warm atmosphere created by the song’s heavenly piano touches, combined with Martinez’s close-miked vocal and underpinned by an insistent snare propelling his overdubbed harmonies, is absolutely haunting.

“And time passes on your favorite music, 100 years from now, will they be singing the songs your parents sang or will they even remember how?”

With this tune, Martinez is giving his “major side quest” a significant chance at success.10 Country Songs by Isaac Martinez is streaming everywhere now.

+++

Isaac Martinez | Links


+++

Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

Friday, April 5, 2024

Helping to pioneer DIY recording in 1990 with “Snailbait,” today Azalia Snail releases her 15th album; All-instrumental POWERLOVER out now.

“She is a singular creative influence on us, our scene, and our generation.” — Robert Schneider of The Apples In Stereo, Elephant 6 Recording Co.

+++


Azalia Snail as photographed by Dan West

+++

Azalia Snail
POWERLOVER
Out Now
(Cloud Recordings)


Streaming Link:

+++

Track Listing:

01. Take Away His Power
02. Zap You of That Hate (WATCH)
03. Don’t Get Too Close To Me (WATCH)
04. Destroy It For No Reason
05. Trek Lite
06. Expert Outlier
07. Still Hanging On
08. Lovers Rising
09. Can’t Wait Til This is Through
10. Save Your Savior
11. Higher Hopes
12. It Becomes Clear To Them

+++

PLAY, POST & SHARE

Azalia Snail | “Don't Get Too Close To Me”





+++

See the video for “Don’t Get Too Close To Me” starring Azalia Snail and musical and life partner Dan West of LoveyDove via V13 here or at the link above.

+++

 ‘Don’t Get Too Close To Me’ is an instrumental that conveys the feeling of the ‘impending doom’ of living in a world gone topsy-turvy, initially by a worldwide pandemic, and which continues on as humans must deal with the threat of potentially alienating factors such as AI, the increasingly competitive nature of modern society, and useless and violent man made wars, not to mention the looming climate war.

“In the video, the isolated couple are forced to acknowledge that the world is becoming increasingly cold, both in climate and human relationships. The disco ball represents the joy and the live entertainment associations from a not too distant past, as it is passed from one person to the other and scrutinized. The couple considers the possibility of connecting, but in the end, decide to stay in their isolation, as it is too risky to do so. ‘Don’t Get Too Close To Me’ is the conclusion of the experiment.” — Azalia Snail

 +++

Azalia Snail | Live


Azalia Snail | POWERLOVER Record Release Show

Sun., April 14: Pasadena, CA @ Healing Force (1200 E Walnut St.)


+++

PLAY, POST & SHARE

Azalia Snail | “Zap You of That Hate”






+++

See the video for “Zap You of That Hate,” featuring longtime Azalia Snail friend Alan Sparhawk of Low on guitar, and musical and life partner Dan West of LoveyDove on bass via Brooklyn Vegan here or listen via the “Weirder Together” podcast hosted by Ben Lee and Ione Skye here.

+++

“If I had only one wish, it would be to zap away the hate with some kind of magic wand,” Azalia Snail says of her current single “Zap You of That Hate,” taken from her 15th album POWERLOVER, out now via Cloud Recordings.

“Confronted and confounded by feelings of deep distress about the uneasy state of the world and the impending doom that comes with that, ‘Zap You of That Hate’ evokes an urgent plea for humanity to be kinder. The piece begins with a simple yet determined riff and builds tension as it turns into a layered, transcendent hymn.

“The video is a collage of uplifting, pleasing images spun through a kaleidoscopic psychedelic dreamscape lens. A kind of utopia we can only imagine if not for the negative, occasional hateful aspects of humanity.”

+++

Azalia Snail | About


Azalia Snail has toured with notable artists such as Sebadoh, Low, and The Grifters. She has also played supporting sets with Marianne Faithful, Beck, Stereolab, Tindersticks, Olivia Tremor Control, The Apples in Stereo, Pavement, Sonic Youth, The Butthole Surfers, and many more.

+++

POWERLOVER is the 15th solo album by American avant-garde musician, Azalia Snail. The all-instrumental album is described by Snail as “an ode to Brian Eno’s ambient soundscapes.”

Snail continues, “I wanted to make an album that would reflect my feelings about the state of the world at this time. Although I’m a huge lover of poetry and usually use lyrics to accentuate those feelings, I felt that these instrumentals represent a feeling that I wanted to convey; uneasiness, anxiety, intensity, reservation. As the album progresses, I wanted to enforce a more positive feeling; hope, beauty, resonance, reflection.”

The album features Snail on Omnichord, Drums, Synths, and Effects. Alan Sparhawk of Low plays ethereal guitar and Dan West plays bass.

“I was also lucky enough to connect with Adam Lasus from Studio Red who has a great history of recording so many wonderful bands from the 90s until now, including Gigolo Aunts, Helium, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, and Yo La Tengo. He is such a delight to work with! Not only very encouraging, but technically proficient.”

POWERLOVER is out now via Cloud Recordings (Circulatory System, Tall Dwarfs, New Sound of Numbers). The lead single “Zap You of That Hate” is streaming now.

+++

Azalia Snail | Links


+++

Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Friends for 30 years, new album Chinwag marks first duo recording from Grammy®-nominated pianist Larry Goldings and trumpeter John Sneider.

Chinwag explores classic American repertoire (Eubie Blake, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Thelonious Monk) via free improvisation, spontaneous composition.

+++


(L-R): Larry Goldings and John Sneider as photographed by David Poe

+++

PLAY, POST & SHARE

Larry Goldings & John Sneider | “Laugh Clown Laugh”



[STREAM]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6RMclLeGdE

+++

About | Larry Goldings & John Sneider | “Laugh Clown Laugh”


A 30 year long friendship between musicians is not necessary to make intimate, creative music together, but it certainly doesn’t hurt.

Chinwag, the first duo record by Grammy®-nominated pianist Larry Goldings and trumpeter John Sneider, is just such a project; a debut three decades in the making. It might seem like a simple undertaking — a small format album of piano and trumpet — but under the hood there is a lot more going on than meets the eyes (or ears).

The project was still taking shape even up to the final moments of recording, “We already had all this material amassed and then we decided to do the old tune ‘Laugh Clown Laugh,’” says Sneider. “We did it in one take. A lot of the stuff on the record is one take. We decided to just play some tunes for fun.

“Laugh Clown Laugh,” featuring Goldings on pocket piano, Wing upright and organ, became the opening track on Chinwag and sets the tone for the project. “It's got all the elements of the record, and it instantly tells you that it's gonna be different. I wanted to make that point in the beginning,” says Goldings.

+++

Chinwag, which literally means “a conversation between friends,” is the most recent expression of the long and ongoing friendship between Goldings and Sneider. Massachusetts natives of the same generation, both grew up with a love of bebop and electronic music. By the time they began playing together on the early 90s New York music scene — working regularly at clubs like Augie’s and the Village Gate — each had become a devotee of hard bop and had developed a common musical language.

“We go way back,” says Goldings. “John was certainly the first great trumpet player I ever played with regularly.” Today Goldings, who eventually moved to Los Angeles, has become one of the most iconic keyboard players of his generation, due in large part to his diversity and flexibility both on stage and in the studio. Sneider has also spent his fair share of time in recording studios and on stages and in recent years has been releasing regular hard bop statements, including 2021’s The Scrapper which also featured Goldings on organ.

Goldings and Sneider flirted with the idea of making a duet record for years. On Goldings’ 2009 Quartet record, for example, they played a haunting duo version of “We Shall Overcome”, and before that, on Curtis Stigers’ 2005 album I Think It’s Going To Rain Today, they recorded a duo version of the title track. In fact, it was during the Stigers recording sessions that the idea of doing a full fledged duet project first appeared. As Goldings explains, “The impetus of us playing duo came out of that experience.”

Chinwag by friends of 30 years, Larry Goldings & John Sneider, is out now. Goldings and Sneider are available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

+++

Larry Goldings & John Sneider
Chinwag
Out Now
(Sticky Mack Records)

Streaming Link:


Track Listing:

01. Laugh Clown Laugh (Fiorito, Lewis, Young) (STREAM)
02. The Great Zamboni (L. Goldings)
03. The Veldt (L. Goldings, J. Sneider) (STREAM)
04. Love Will Find A Way (E. Blake)
05. Sweet and Lovely (G. Arnheim) (VIDEO)
06. Hesitation Blues (W.C Handy)
07. Diary Of A Lost Girl (L. Goldings, J. Sneider)
08. In Walked Bud (B. Powell)
09. Beautiful Dreamer (S. Foster)
10. Sepia (J. Sneider)
11. Salad Days (L. Goldings)
12. Berkshire Dawn (L. Goldings)
13. Chinwag (L. Goldings, J. Sneider)
14. Briar Rose (J. Sneider)
15. Napoleon Contest (L. Goldings, J. Sneider)
16. If I Loved You (Rodgers & Hammerstein)

+++

Larry Goldings & John Sneider | Links

FACEBOOK (Larry Goldings) : INSTAGRAM (Larry Goldings) : INSTAGRAM (John Sneider) : SPOTIFY : APPLE

+++

Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact