Martin Sexton

When John Mayer dubbed Martin Sexton the best live performer he has ever seen, it was clear that Sexton had come a long way from his days as a street performer in Boston. The Syracuse native has since launched his own label, Kitchen Table Records, and his diverse musical talents have carried him from the sidewalk to landmark venues such as Carnegie Hall. Best known for his untamed and unpredictable voice, Sexton has most recently showcased his talents on his new album, Sugarcoating, set for release in April. American Songwriter had the chance to address an array of topics with Sexton, including his ascent as a singer/songwriter and what we can expect from his upcoming tour.

Throughout your career, you’ve certainly established yourself as a versatile artist, releasing a lengthy batch of records that display your wide vocal range and resourcefulness. How would you compare Sugarcoating to your previous work?

Like most of my other records, Sugarcoating for the most part was recorded live in the studio and it’s quite rangy like my other records as well. I think this record has even more of a thread of consciousness running through it, both socially and spiritually with a call-out for unity for people to come together and see the likeness in each other versus the differences. I believe we are all much more alike than we are different.

Backtracking a bit, I read up on your bio and it tells me you taught yourself how to play guitar as a teenager. Who were some of your earliest musical influences?

My earliest musical instruments range from The Beatles to Stevie Wonder to Jimi Hendrix to Janice Joplin to Zeppelin. Sabbath and all that meat and potatoes classic rock.

After some time you decided to leave New York for Boston, and started playing on sidewalks in Harvard Square. I grew up around the Square, so I know how tough it is to garner respect as a street performer. Did you encounter any setbacks early in your career?

The cops would make it hard and shut us down and hassle us. City Hall tried to shut us down altogether, but we unified as a whole, got a lawyer, and fought City Hall and won – we won basically our right to exercise the first amendment. I remember being quite disillusioned at that time, especially in a city as liberal as Cambridge, Mass. – the legal hoops we had to jump through just to sing on the street.

For those aspiring songwriters out there, was there a moment of truth when you knew you could make it in the industry?

Yes, there was a moment of truth – that was the first night after quitting my job – I took my guitar into Harvard Square and played and people listened. I knew at that moment I could play my own songs and get my own message out there. For the first time I had that spark of hope that this is actually possible.

Returning to your album, I noticed on some of the songs, like “Always Got Away,” your voice really takes charge and reveals its full potential. Is it tempting to show your full vocal range on every song?

For me the song dictates how I’m going to sing it. Sometimes it calls for a hushed whisper or an understated melody and sometimes it calls for a balls-to-the-wall wailing. It can at times be tempting to whip out every lick I know, but I think it would tire the listener and take the focus off of the song.

Lastly, you will be heading on tour in April to promote Sugarcoating. For those not familiar with your live shows, what can we expect from your onstage performances? A little beatboxing perhaps?

I’ll play with my new band, I’ll play solo, I’ll whack my guitar, I’ll distort my voice, I’ll whisper and I’ll scream and sweat my ass off.