KRISTI MARTEL: Brave Enough

Kristi Martel

Brave Enough

© 2001 Sealed Lip Music/ASCAP (634479088704)

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Soulful voices, bluesy piano, the most perfect drums, funky bass and beautiful poetry make this album lush and danceable and introspective.

tracks

1 See You Sweet
2 Silver
3 Hands
4 Honor
5 Fly
6 Promise
7 Through That Door
8 Even Free
9 Give

notes

Review: Kristi Martel - Brave Enough (Sealed Lip Records)
"There's this thing Kristi Martel does with her voice. The first time I played 'Brave Enough,' it shut me up and made me say, 'Damn!' That's just her voice. As a pianist and songwriter, Martel does not shy from her feminism. She seems to shy from nothing. Her voice sometimes evokes Bjork's but it is more soulful, more post-punk Laura Nyro. She looks head-on at issues like feminine body image and self-esteem, sex, dying, the power of community, and the challenges and favor of intimacy. But as the liner notes wisely recommend, 'play this thing loud.' 'Brave Enough' is part groove diary, part social exegesis, and a whole lot of fun."
-- Cesca Waterfield, Expository Magazine

When Kristi Martel was three she sang to salt and pepper shakers atop tables in restaurants.

Her family encouraged her to do this.

Everyone in the restaurant would clap.

So she kept singing and making up harmonies and began piano lessons with a strong desire to be a famous musician.

Today, Kristi Martel's sweet presence, stunning vocals, intricate piano rhythms, and fearless songwriting endear audiences nationwide.

"...love emanates from every note." - Vienna Teng

"...a fine musician...Incomparable!" - Utah Phillips

Featured on NPR (January 2007), in Curve Magazine (June 2007), and on WERS (November 2006), and Voted RI's Best Female Alt-Rock Vocalist in 2006 by Motif Magazine, avant-soul piano diva Kristi Martel grew up in New England and left in 1990 to earn an ASCAP grant and two music degrees (Bard and Mills College) in NY and CA before returning home to RI in 2003. The visionary soulsinger choreographed performance art and composed vocal music to tell stories about relationships, cultural identity, body image, and body memory before beginning her touring and recording career in 2000.

A finalist in many of the top international songwriting competitions, Kristi's piano playing combines her love of blues dissonance and syncopation with her classical training. Her voice is at once sweet and bitter, able to leap and soar, whisper and rattle, expressive of any emotion she chooses and fluid throughout her 4-octave range. She is visionary in her lyrics and composition, writing her prayers for solace and quirky relationship narratives in the same breath.

Through Sealed Lip Records, Kristi has released six CDs. "brave enough" was Kristi's first full-length album. It features Littlebird's backing vocals on two tracks and her fretless bass on one. The album was recorded in just two long days and mixed in the next two long days. We were stunned by its beauty. We danced to make it.

discography:
Ravengirl (LP 2006)
Quaint & Curious Ravendemos (LP 2005)
The Mule (LP 2004)
bound (single 2003)
brave enough (LP 2001)
give me a little... (EP 2000)

reviews

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  • loved it!!
    author: Juan R.

    THE CD WAS SO GOOD!!!! I cant believe i didnt buy it sooner. Im glad that you make music because its just so good to hear the art you produce its amazing. thank you

  • We would all be happy if this was what we heard on the radio
    author: Isaac

    A very very strong and emotionally affective composition executed with great musicianship and feel. If you like amazing vocals that will touch you, this is a surefire hit.

  • Awesome work of art
    author: Clock

    This is an amazing CD. I love every song on here, with "Give" and "Through that Door" being my favorites. But every song on here has a surprise for you, whether its the witty lyrics, strong vocal delievery or the wonderful instrumentation...the album is a great work of art and Kristi Martel definitely deserves more attention and praise. Here's to you Krisi (toasts) for pouring your heart out to us and giving us hope and good dreams.

  • Amazing, intense, outsanding
    author: Dan Hartman

    A pristine collection of memorable songs that showcase the immense talent of their gifted composer/performer. Her soaring, powerful vocals are complemented perfectly by her gorgeous, haunting piano work. This is a must-have.

  • This, without doubt, would be my 'Desert Island Disc'. Genius.

    Through that Door is absolutely my favourite song of all time. The lyrics are dangerously deceptive in their simplicity, because they, and the music and her Voice (sic) peel my walls, my masks my lies and leave me looking at myself, while all the time soothing the tears. I love music, but this reaction rarely happens to me. I have never before sat aghast, trembling; bereft and exstatic at hearing an song. It's the only song I NEED. The rest of the album lives up to its title. It should be dished out on prescription. BUY IT: it's the best therapy you'll ever get.

  • A true expression of the heart
    author: Joshua Siegel

    This cd is a gif to the world . The energy and vibration truly moves me at my core being.

  • I cried, I laughed, I got mad, I fell in love.
    author: Elizabeth Welch

    Passion abounds in this CD. A must have. I've bought it for all my friends :-) You should too!

  • impressive, charming, sophisticated...
    author: Tom 'Tearaway' Schulte

    Kristi Martel's dynamic and skillful phrasing, an ever-changing component of her delivery, makes this vocal album an impressive effort. Tracks like "Silver" offer the charming, hip style of electric neo-folk artist Ani DiFranco. However, Martel builds on this with sophisticated jazz improvisation delivered naturally and easily, as on the climax of "See You Sweet."

  • Wonderful, strong, definite...
    author: JD Davy
  • Most Excellent! She's Got Your Attention From Start To Finish.......
    author: Guttrbunny@aol.com

    Everyone should be so lucky enough to have the sense to own this disk! Amazing is the word I would use to describe this CD. When I heard Honor for the 1st time I knew that this disk would rock! It does so much that it's a mystery to me why everyone doesn't have a kung-fu grip on this disk. Rockin bonus score!

  • passionate, political, universal; buy this now!
    author: Cesca Waterfield

    ...musically unparalleled. Emotionally, we can all relate. Kristi sings like each line is her soul. She has courage coupled with creativity. Cesca Waterfield, www.cesca.net

  • Grab this CD and then hear her LIVE!! She's on tour through June...www.kmetal.ne
    author: Kate

    Brave Enough is just that. Kristi rocks the mic, and the piano and everything else. The CD starts and ends with the best songs of the album. See You Sweet is a personal and emotional piece--breaking down the walls of silence. Kristi revamped Give for this album, and it comes out better than ever with a jazzy beat and vocals that simply blow the listener away. Clear a space in your CD collection!

  • Brave Enough is an OUTSTANDING collection of songs!
    author: Lisa Harrison, Psy.d.

    Since I received Brave Enough for my birthday (I expressly asked for it after hearing Kristi Martel perform months ago), I listen to it every chance I get. It's definitely my favorite CD and Kristi has become my favorite singer/songwriter. I love her beautiful voice; she sings with such great range and diversity. Add the amazing, touching, emotionally laden lyrics that say everything you've always wanted to say but didn't quite know how, and you've got an outstanding collection of songs. I couldn't recommend Brave Enough more highly!

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