Without his excellent voice, ability to mix genres, and great songwriting, the beat-bopping would be nothing more than a gimmick. Combined with those elements, it is nothing short of breathtaking. It's like watching one of the great jazz scat singers use their voice to make music, only taking it a step further with a little technology.
Frankly, I was not familiar enough with Sexton's music in advance to know the names of all the songs, but talking with his merchandise guy yielded the names of some of the songs I liked best: "Candy," "In the Journey," "Thinking of You," "Angeline," and "Gypsy Woman," all different and all amazing.
Sexton's voice manages to be cool, jazzy, warm, and earthy at the same time. He can move from a growling, evocative bass to a smooth, folksy middle range, to an effortless falsetto. Add to that the incredible musical improvisations, and you have the most unique concert performance I have ever personally witnessed, and one that was a thorough delight as well.
Martin Sexton's new EP, Falls Like Rain, is available now and contains five songs. Despite the fair price of $4.99, Sexton told the audience that anyone who was out of work (or out of money) only needed to inform the merchandise man and he would give it to them for free. How many artists have you heard make a statement like that? If you get a chance to catch Martin Sexton, do it. You'll be glad you did.
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