The ability of an artist to reinvent themselves and evolve is often a keynote for a long and successful career. Martha D. Lewis has such an ability.
From trailblazing music-comedy duo beginnings with Eve Polycarpou as «Donna and Kebab» (Live at the Hackney Empire DVD); three albums as «Martha and Eve» ; from jazzy world music on Martha’s debut solo album «Café Aman – Double Life»; to the brave re-imaginings of urban Greek blues on the album «Homage to Roza». As a dynamic entertainer, Martha D. Lewis is always looking ahead to create the next project, ensuring constant artistic progression.
Martha’s 2022 album, «All That You See», is a new direction of deeply personal reflections alongside social commentary songs written over two years, as Martha explains, «After a vast and varied musical journey in the last 2 decades of composition, theatre music, mentoring and film and documentary presenting, I returned to song writing in 2018 with a flurry of social-political songs about the world around us. In early 2019, the writing abruptly stopped with the unexpected loss of my soulmate of 28 years. The loss profoundly affected me, nothing would be the same again…building a new life from the rubble of grief, this album is a story of angst and losing faith, healing and gaining hope».
Finding both solace and comfort in being able to express the start of new beginnings with the poignant song «Dawn», Martha reflects in the chorus, «Dawn has come/I made it through/The darkest night/I never thought I’d see/The light of day».
«Dawn» is about coming through dark times, only to find hope again, a timely message with wide relevance and context for those who have lost loved ones over the last months. Martha’s lead and backing vocals on «Dawn» are full of grace and space dancing on a tender tightrope while keyboard player, Aidan Glover, adds his magic to «Dawn»with flavours of Mike Garson’s piano on David Bowie’s «Aladdin Sane».
«All That You See» opens with the gripping song «AI Man», a refreshing look at «algorithm choice» and the encroachment of machines and technology into our daily lives, Martha asks: is humanity is creating its own expiry date and preparing for machines to rule?
The album’s title track, «All That You See», tenderly speaks of the dangers of the internet’s easily accessible sexualised content and the all-too often traumatic effect this can have on young people, who think that what they are seeing must be «normal» and «acceptable». The jazzy-blues song «Liars Club» starts with Leon Stenning’s deft guitar work and delivers punchy social messages from Martha about the «growing thorn» of corporate greed, especially when mixed with toxic fake news.
«It’s a growing thorn and it’s called greed/ A raging storm gathering speed….I hope a change will be coming soon/ Hope the world can rewind/ Pray we come back home to love/ And to hell with the ‘Liars Club’».
In between Martha’s social message songs, the listener is invited to explore more vulnerable songs such as «Beneath The Surface» which glides along with Martha embracing the vulnerability of love. It’s a perfect meld of jazzy-blues art-pop and it’s an easy song to fall into and not want to leave.
To create a dynamic new direction for this collection of songs, Martha gathered an ensemble of high-class musicians, producers + sound engineers for the project at Real World Studios. This included drummer Ian Matthews (Kasabian), Nick Cohen (Massive Attack, Annie Lennox) and one of the world’s most respected and innovative producers and sound engineers, Stephen W Tayler. From decades of experience of working with the greats such as Kate Bush, Phil Collins, Stevie Nicks and Peter Gabriel, Stephen W. Tayler has sprinkled stardust onto the mixes of Martha’s songs.
«All That You See» is a looking glass into the thoughts, drives and vulnerabilities of Martha D. Lewis. There is a sense that you are in the hands of a masterful songwriter, one who can just as easily converse with emotional pain and then equally comfortably, take strides of angst at the world around us. «All That You See» is Martha D. Lewis’s sixth and boldest album to date, releasing through Budd on the 8th April 2022 with International distribution through Cadiz Music.
