Isaac Martinez - Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers
“Coloradoan Isaac Martinez just released a country-tinged album, sounding like the son of Beck when he released his country record.” – KVOQ/Indie 102.3
“I still listen to Time Passes all the time, I cant believe it hasnt broke 1000 plays yet but im working on it” – LA singer-songwriter Hank May
Isaac Martinez follows up his single-genre, misleadingly titled Alt-Folk debut 10 Country Songs (NACC #190, #1 on Folk Adds, #6 on Folk) by releasing an unwieldy and kaleidoscopic follow up with an equally unwieldy title: Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers.
Written and recorded with a colorful cast of Colorado characters, and with the production and engineering wizardry of Lucien Nuciola (Zara Larsson) and Andy Flebbe (Green Day) at hand (as well as a writing collaboration with LA rapper/producer Robin Harris, Jr., son of the late great comedian Robin Harris, on “Industry Rules”), Isaac uses a library of opposing visions to create his unified sonic world.
“Half of the tracks here are about my wife, half of the tracks are about a frustrating world that is just too big for me to fight” says Isaac about the album. “There’s so much going on in the world, and so many different ways to look at things, so that’s why this record is so diverse. But everything reflects back to my three closest relationships: my marriage, my existence in the world, and my relationship with God.”
SLOTGC (titled after a recent book that explores the spiritual side of Beethoven & the like, sent as a gift to Martinez from his father) spans Surf Rock, Classical Guitar, Slowcore, Blog-Era Trap, Indie Folk-Rap (a la Beck), and Adult Contemporary, amongst other genre experiments. The constant here is Isaac’s world-weary baritone, which he deploys to lyrically take note of his surroundings, jot down his observations, and soak up the existential malaise.
Lest this wind up as another downcast, indie, race-to-the-bottom, angst-and-apathy fest, however, Isaac searches for value in everything. From his wife and two young children, to the Drake and Kendrick beef, to Jesus, God, and the Spirit, to a Lauryn Hill song…to “a cool pool at nine in the afternoon”, water, MTV’s Ridiculousness, a Honda Civic, the backrooms, Chance the Rapper, Lil Peep, Sade, Kanye, BROCKHAMPTON, and, especially, “Expensive Coffee”, the 28-year old Colorado native wrings meaning from all corners of life.
Half alt-folk genre bender, half psychedelic backpack-rap throwback, Spiritual Lives is, simply, a journey.
The journey, inspired by the gameplay style of the “roguelike” video game genre, ends with a four- minute long piano piece written by Martinez when he was 9 years old called “Lobby Music”. This piece, named to reflect the feeling of the home screen that lingers after you finish a game in full, is part vanity piece, part homage to his younger self, and a simplistic finale that highlights a dilemma. Martinez’s mix of eclectic decision making, great songwriting, and breadth of talent make him a musician to watch, but is he, as the album title hints, one of the Great Composers?