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Cat Martino
As her voice emerges you are drawn in by its natural strength and intimacy. Cat Martino is a Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter whose music lives in the space between transcendent poetry and raw reality. Her songs are filled with wonder, exposing honesty that dares to delve into what is both light and dark. Love songs shift to pure rock expressions, as you travel from the warmth of her home to the good night streets with her city vamp. Cat's refreshing approach to live performance has been turning heads in her hometown of New York City in such venues as the Living Room, Pete's Candy Store and Lakeside Lounge, as well as on tours in the U.S. Now, with the release her debut full-length CD, Here Now, we are given the key to the real range of her artistry. Cat plays guitar and piano with instinct and ear, and spins entrancing melodies her own way. Whether she plays solo, or is joined by cello and violin amid layers of sonic guitar, bass, and drums, be ready to go on a ride.
Here Now was produced by Cat Martino along with Jack Petruzzelli (Rufus Wainwright, Joan Osborne Band) and Jimi Zhivago (Ollabelle), both multi-instrumentalist veterans of the New York music scene and beyond. These songs move from dreamlike vistas to edgy urban landscapes, maintaining universal accessibility while bearing their original "Cat" mark. The title track and 1st single is "Here Now". At once gritty and ethereal, her voice floats above hypnotic electric guitar and piano in the emotion-filled pop-rock anthem. Acoustic songs like "Castles" and "Quarter" are filled with a simple vulnerability that go right to your heart’s core. Cat lures one in with the bare-whisper of "You’ve come to see the mirror in me, then you move like the ocean, instinctively," only to explode into cathartic chorus on "Thank You". Of course, don’t forget the gems, "Cover/Uncover It", where Cat’s voice unfolds within layers of beats and twinkling sound, and the timeless, moody piano of "People Talk". At the album’s close, Cat offers the question and answer, "Do you think that you could start to understand this human heart? / It’s a piece of red rare steak past out on your dinner plate," on "Forgot How to Fly", an alt-country live favorite. Full band, string, and piano arrangements are enhanced by wurlitzer, omnichord, and electro-guitars. Here Now was recorded and mixed at Loho Studios in N.Y.C. by Pete DeBoeur, and Lakehouse Studios in P.A. by Pete Kepler (soundman for David Bowie, The Eels) with tasteful ingenuity that is all too often bypassed in the production of much modern music. Born from influences diverse as Joni Mitchell, The Beatles, Nina Simone, Nick Drake, P.J. Harvey, and Bjork...Cat Martino is modern, classic, and all her own.
the full story...
Born on Long Island in 1975, Cat was adopted to the amazingly wonderful Martino family at age 3 months. As she was given limitless love and affection, it was clear that her musical gifts were innate (rumor has it her birth father was a guitar player from Texas). The truth to boot was the only 8-track she heard in the back of their 1970's Cadillac was Engelbird Humperdink. She grew up an avid stage performer in local theater and musical groups. She did very well at piano lessons, but could never sit still for very long. So Cat spent time playing outside, making songs in her head, and staging backyard circus performances for neighbors and friends.
In high school, she continued in music and theater. As mixed tapes of everything from the Pixies and The Velvet Underground, to Otis Redding and Janis Joplin were passed around, she fell in love with rock n’ roll. She and friends created music in their own suburban counter-culture, making bands in basements, and jamming in the woods or by the bridge. Through work and play she developed her natural ear for melody, harmony, and free-form improvisation.
Cat traveled to sunny New Jersey to study various arts at Rutgers college. Soon after she received a scholarship to study voice at Rutgers College, she realized her voice went far beyond what formal training could offer. After the second lesson, her 'untraditional' vocal sounds prompted her frustrated teacher to plea bargain an easy A if she just wouldn’t come back. Instead Cat studied yoga and dance to support development of breath and creativity. The front-woman for bands in high school and college, it wasn’t until she heard Joni Mitchell’s Court and Spark, Cat began writing her own songs. "It dawned on me I could write for myself with the freedom that you didn’t have to play inside of any particular forms; you could make up yr own chords and tunings, and stories any way you wanted. I got a guitar and learned to play by ear and making cool shapes." She played her first ope-mic to an amazed audience response and a singer/songwriter was born.
Cat moved to Brooklyn, New York, and immediately took to the city scene, landing weekly gig at the St. Marks Bar and playing for kicks and tips in subways. She honed her skills solo and also developed music with cellist Noah Hoffeld, which lent itself to an E.P. "Dance of Destruction", released in 2003. The music’s firey and vulnerable quality fueled choregraphy for a piece by Melissa Briggs Dance entitled "citySTORY", which debuted live at Merce Cunningham Studios. In this piece Cat becomes the vessel for which the dancers stories speak, and she naturally digs into her theatrical roots to explore sounds which evoke the mood of a dark Cabaret. The piece’s edgy human quality was hailed by the Village Voice as "A bold and impressive new work," deeming Cat’s role to be, "Mesmerizing". During this time Cat also began to teach music, dance, and theater workshops in public schools. She continues her activism through the arts, and finds inspiration from teaching city youth, to whom she must constantly explain why she doesn’t want to go on "American Idol".
Along the way, Cat met co-producer/co-conspirator Jack Petruzzelli (Rufus Wainwright, Joan Osborne Band), whose tones and textures on guitar, keyboards, and sound loops add a sonic play-field to Cat’s music. Their music and chemistry lead them to assemble a home-studio at Jack’s family house in PA, appropriately titled Lakehouse Studios. Cat’s expression also caught the ears of Victor Luke at Loho Studios, who set her up for a musical blind studio date with producer/guitarist Jimmi Zhivago. One thing led to another and a soon a record was being made. The forth-coming record includes engineering and mixing by Pete Kepler (known for his live sound engineering with David Bowie and the Eels), and Pete De Boeur.
The musicians on "Here Now" are: Cat Martino (vocals, guitars, piano, organ, wurlitzer, percussion, arrangements), Jack Petruzzelli (guitars, keyboards, percussion, sound loops), Jimmi Zhivago (guitars, organ, omnichord, percussion), Matt Lindsey (bass), Tony Shanahan (bass), Rich Mercurio (drums), Jagoda (drums), Marty Beller (drums), Billy Ward (drums), Pete DeBoeur (programming), Lyris Hung (violin), Noah Hoffeld (cello, arrangements), Julia Biber (cello), and Vincent Cecio and Stacy Roupas (background vocals). Also, a warm welcome to cellist, Juila Kent, the newest addition in Cat’s ever changing musical chair band.
