The Air Between Words

This is an exploration of the essence of all of Martyn’s music: a rugged four-to-the-floor groove, intelligently sculpted and artfully composed.

Where Great Lengths - his 2009 debut - was a body of work that explored Martyn’s uncategorizable versatility, and 2011’s Ghost People (via Brainfeeder) was a focused effort on writing an album with a specific sound, The Air Between Words came from a different realm altogether. Martyn had no parameters, and in fact no plan at all. He fell into a back-to-basics mentality where simple experimentation with purely analogue sounds and equipment inadvertently turned to melodic sketches, and without warning the album revealed itself.

“Every album signifies a period in your life, and finishing one shows you something about yourself,” says Martyn about the experience. “Without the music being introspective, this is my most natural sounding album.”

The Air Between Words opens coyly with the panoramic sonics of "Forgiveness Step 1" - a beatless but nonetheless authoritative statement of intent - before pitching headlong into pure dancefloor territory. Lean, raw, powerful productions predominate - gloriously brash, occasionally beautiful, but always vigorously hypnotic, sensitively swung and utterly irresistible.