Madeline Martin releases debut single

Newcomer Madeline Martin is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Dallas, Texas, who’s taking her steps as a solo artist with a compelling debut single, “I-35.” Despite her relatively recent foray into playing guitar and keyboard, a journey that began only two years ago, Madeline’s unique sound combines poetic singer-songwriter lyricism with the gritty edge of a full rock band.

Having been penning her own original songs since her high school years, Madeline’s musical journey took an unexpected turn when she picked up her mother’s guitar, which had been sitting unopened in a closet for almost a year. Learning to play both guitar and keyboard, Madeline ventured on a path that led her to become a fully-fledged solo artist in just two short years.

Influenced by artists such as Lizzy McAlpine, Billie Eilish, Nessa Barrett and Taylor Swift, she’s ready to share her sound with the world. Now she makes her official artistic entrance and brings us her debut single titled “I-35,” a compelling indie rock anthem that’s so astonishingly well crafted it’s hard to believe it’s only her first outing, let alone one from an artist whose sonic vision only started to blossom two years ago.

Written after seeing Lizzy McAlpine perform live, the experience provided the spark of creativity for Madeline to compose a song that recounts a tale of struggling relationship where both people are at fault. Starting with a stripped back sound of Madeline’s delicate vocals over the hushed backing of acoustic guitar strums, the hazy twang of clean electric guitar casting broken chords brings in the sparse taps of drums, gentle plucks of bass and elegant string touches. The result is a smokey slice of melancholic indie rock wrapped in sorrow and capped by Madeline’s stunning vocal performance that softly rises to gradually build up the tension.

As the drums inject more movement, the arrangement swells around her voice before the crunch of gritty guitar tones launches a moody rock finale. Thick, fuzzy guitar tones and commanding vocals collide above the crash of drums in a spectacular crescendo before the song floats back down to the bare arrangement of the start.

Across its three and and a half minutes, “I-35” sees Madeline Martin serve up an engrossing musical experience that marks her arrival in a truly arresting way. It’s a debut that’s sure to stand the test of time and one that signals the start of what’s sure to be a thrilling sonic adventure for this exciting new artist on the rise.

Commenting on making the song, she shares, “I honestly found the entire process super fun. This was the first time I was in a studio and everything was being made from scratch. It was really cool to see and hear everything come together. Especially the drum part going into the bridge of the song. It took a few tries, but in the end I think it turned out to be one of my favourite parts of the song.”

Listen to I-35 below

More from Music

---

Editor Picks

---