Originally from Los Gatos, California, singer-songwriter Ryan Martin started writing songs when he was 14 and was soon playing in bands and doing solo gigs up and down the West Coast. After a traumatic car accident in 2005, life took a dark turn and Martin found himself bouncing between jail and treatment. Realizing he needed a fresh start in order to turn his focus back to his music, he made his way to New York City. He soon found a band, and an audience, and recorded his excellent debut album, For All the Beautiful Losers. After gigging around NYC, touring all over the United States, engaging new fans, and becoming a father, Martin felt he was ready to make a record that reflected a new sense of hope and purpose.
Martin’s sophomore record, Gimme Some Light (out June 29 on High Moon Records), is the sound of catharsis and renewal, loss and reinvention. It is a living jukebox, full of vivid, deeply personal songs that span considerable emotional and sonic terrain. Drawing from the same well of timeless American music that informs artists like Neil Young, Ryan Adams, Gillian Welch and Bruce Springsteen, Martin’s themes can get dark – self-doubt, longing, heartbreak, addiction – but the music is full of bold melodies, energy, humor and hope.
Recorded at The Art Farm (Felice Brothers, Nels Cline) in Upstate New York, Gimme Some Light goes deep and wide into Martin’s songbook. From the dark and twangy Americana of “Death of Love” to the driving R.E.M.-ish jangle of “Say You Love Me”, the modern rock exaltation of “Lepers In Armor,” to the timeless fragility of ‘Real Human Being’; these are classic songs luminous with imagery and feeling.
Today Glide is excited to premiere the video for Martin’s “New England Song”. Recorded in a rustic house with his small band, the video captures Martin performing in a setting that fits his music well. It’s easy to listen to watch Martin perform and think of the Band playing music at Big Pink as his voice conjures a touch of Rick Danko and The Band’s nostalgic reflections on country life and far away times. The song also features rich, heartfelt harmonies that add a weighty emotion to Martin’s lyrical coming to terms. Equal parts folk, country and Americana, this is honest music from someone who has lived an at times rough life but aims to do right.
Reflecting on the inspiration behind the song, Martin has this to say:
“I went up to Portland, Maine to try and escape New York City. The caws of the seagulls would resonate between the buildings as I walked the streets – mostly aimlessly and sometimes with more destructive intentions. And other times I would talk to the fisherman in half pursuit of a job on a lobster boat. Getting high by the sea and waking up with dread and falling into the trap all over again. I knew I was losing myself, and I knew I had to get back and turn things around. I bought a bus ticket and left the place where no future was possible with the hope of never going back.”
WATCH:
Ryan Martin releases Gimme Some Light on June 29. Check out tour dates below and visit ryanmartinmusic.net. Album pre-order: https://lnk.to/gimmesomelight
Ryan Martin Tour Dates
6/23 Danbury, CT – Danbury Artisan Street Fair
6/24 Woodstock, NY – The Colony+
6/28 New York, NY – Sid’s Gold *Album Release Party*
7/16 Los Angeles, CA – Love Song Bar
7/17 West Hollywood, CA – State Social House
7/18 San Francisco, CA – Hotel Utah~
7/19 Chico, CA – Naked Lounge
7/20 Eugene, OR – Sam Bond’s Brewing~
7/21 Portland, OR – The Big Legrowlski~
7/22 Bend, OR – Volcanic Theatre Pub#
7/24 Seattle, WA – Renaissance Seattle Hotel~
7/25 Seattle, WA – Lagunitas Brewery Tap Room~
8/3 Rochester, NY – Abilene Bar & Lounge*
8/4 Cleveland, OH – Coda*
8/5 Nashville, TN – The Cobra*
8/7 Charlotte, NC – Tommy’s Pub*
8/8 TBD NC*
8/9 Richmond, VA – The Camel*
8/10 New York, NY – Piano’s*
8/11 Boston, MA – TBD*
8/12 New Market, NH – The Stone Church*
Sharing Bills with:
+Jim Kweskin
~Christina LaRocca
#Jeff Crosby
*The Kenny Brother’s Band
MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED.
