Kate Martin and the Shallowsea Choir

The relatively quiet Kate Martin is a newly discovered Aussie music jewel of mine. I had found her single, Lua, by chance on Triple J Unearthed (J fan or not, you gotta love that site) and adored it immediately. She’s easy to love, Martin; her midway accent allows her Australian cadence to peek through, but not to the oft-slammed Missy Higgins degree.

It’s an odd trait of Aussie music fans, isn’t it? The average punter will rag on a band that sounds, in their ears, “too American” by singing in what is essentially a much easier and more pleasing musical accent, but also denigrates anyone who sounds too Australian or “totally bogan”, as I’ve heard. I’ll try to refrain from entering thesis mode here, but it’s a thought to bank nonetheless.

Anyway, Lua is a loverly folksy opener; “I woke up, grumpy from the light/ Distracted by a pot of tea”, Martin cutely sings amid the tinkle and sway of the track’s warm and sunny disposition. It’s like a blanket made from cloud. Let Your Troubles Sleep follows; it’s slower and sadder, but similarly inviting. The thick, bulbous keys meld with xylophone; gorgeous.

Please and Thankyou has sparse but well-placed instrumentation; a wise move, as Martin’s voice is the star of the show. She displays a warm, beautiful vocal talent that I find so rarely in Australian music, and am always happy to discover. The brush-stroke drums and choral backing vocals make Please and Thankyou very poignant, but still somehow optimistic.

By Southern Rain, however, I am tiring somewhat of the balladry. Martin has a gorgeous voice, no doubt about that. And the album is well-produced and well-made. But the pop-folk smile of Lua has dissipated into a bevy of slower (though still divine, I maintain) tracks that kill the flow slightly. Still love it, though.

Bones utilizes a chilling flute in this nautical-styled number. Martin’s sweet, sad voice is alluring and weightless; “This is the house where you grew up/ This is the clock that you would watch as the days went by”. The album continues on its folksy ballad way until the darker, more electronic-ish mood and ethereal vocals of The Fall. It’s a pretty jagged deviation, but a good move. Checkmate.

The album ends with Sunflower, a starkly beautiful number (with the delightful addition of banjo) that forces you to focus full attention on Martin’s tender voice; “You can feel the wind as he whispers weather changing”. Sublime. - watchoutfor.com.au

Kate Martin brings us a debut album full of dreamy pop folk full of fun transitions between styles. Synthetic Shoes, Leather Boots experiments with multi-layered music, with a wide range of instrumentation including piano, autoharp and harmonium, as well as some more unconventional soundbites, including a loop of a stomach growling. This 19-year-old from Townsville has an impressive voice, which drives the album with choral backing fleshing out the vocals. Lua starts the album with a singalong feel and upbeat acoustic guitar, upping the tempo as the song progresses. Southern Rain and Please and Thank You are both wonderfully rich melanges of styles and instruments typical of Martin’s style. Final song Sunflower is a sweet and whimsical musing on the experience of leaving home. Synthetic Shoes, Leather Boots provides an undeniably relaxing listen experience and hints at great potential from a girl with a voice that draws you in.

VICTORIA NUGENT - Rave Magazine

On first impressions, some things on Kate Martin's debut record become immediately obvious. One of them being, its quite puzzling as to how a teenager coming from the relatively unknown Townsville could produce such a product. It almost sounds like Synthetic Shoes, Leather Boots is her fourth or fifth album, evident with the matured form of songwriting, creative arrangements and some delicate production values and techniques. Opening song "Lua" is beautifully sung and contains a highly catchy chorus that might sit nicely as a summer advertisement theme song, probably because it has that same addictiveness you’d find in a Feist, Sarah Blasko or New Buffalo tune.

"Let Your Troubles Sleep", is a dreamy little number that features ghostly backing harmonies. Harmonies you’ll notice seem to subtly squeeze their way into each song - listen carefully on this one and you can hear all sorts of crickets, and children’s percussion instruments. There’s a sort of rewarding quality to the record, as all the songs aren’t ultimately as catchy as the opener. The more effort you put into the listening, the more things you’ll find. As it turns out, Martin isn’t just a grand singer and songwriter; she’s also an amazing guitarist. Check out the finger-picking on "Shaking in the Wings", "Please and Thank You" or the Spanish-esque runs in "Southern Rain" - they’re hiding behind all of the echoes, piano arrangements and tambourine, but listen hard enough and you’ll hear them, trust me. Another little hidden treasure on "Southern Rain" is the last verse, which seems to have some sort of robotic manipulator singing some of the words.

This isn’t your typical Australian female acoustic singer-songwriter, and you can tell there has been a lot of experimentation inside the Sydney studio where it was recorded. Check out the womb-like qualities of the four-line song "The Fall" for an example of being ballsy and uncommercial yet completely appropriate. There are even some appearances by multi-instrumentalist Joseph Ireland a member of another well-known Townsville band, The Middle East, who provides some backing vocals and some distinctive banjo playing on "Autumn Swirl".

While the should-be singles like "Lua" and "Shaking in the Wings" are definitely highlights, it’s the other songs that require more attention that might have longer lasting appeal. The simplistic yet well-placed closer "Sunflower" is a nice little conclusion to the satisfying ten-track album, which I guess feels like a slowly erupting volcano of melodies. As far as first albums go, especially by someone so young, this should fill listeners with nothing but excitement with its uniqueness and most importantly it catchiness and relaxing qualities. It could be the perfect little album for a rainy Sunday afternoon, for fans of Feist, Sarah Blasko, Holly Throsby and New Buffalo – look no further for this hot new talent.

Review Score: 8/10
- The AU Review

On first impressions, some things on Kate Martin's debut record become immediately obvious. One of them being, its quite puzzling as to how a teenager coming from the relatively unknown Townsville could produce such a product. It almost sounds like Synthetic Shoes, Leather Boots is her fourth or fifth album, evident with the matured form of songwriting, creative arrangements and some delicate production values and techniques. Opening song "Lua" is beautifully sung and contains a highly catchy chorus that might sit nicely as a summer advertisement theme song, probably because it has that same addictiveness you’d find in a Feist, Sarah Blasko or New Buffalo tune.

"Let Your Troubles Sleep", is a dreamy little number that features ghostly backing harmonies. Harmonies you’ll notice seem to subtly squeeze their way into each song - listen carefully on this one and you can hear all sorts of crickets, and children’s percussion instruments. There’s a sort of rewarding quality to the record, as all the songs aren’t ultimately as catchy as the opener. The more effort you put into the listening, the more things you’ll find. As it turns out, Martin isn’t just a grand singer and songwriter; she’s also an amazing guitarist. Check out the finger-picking on "Shaking in the Wings", "Please and Thank You" or the Spanish-esque runs in "Southern Rain" - they’re hiding behind all of the echoes, piano arrangements and tambourine, but listen hard enough and you’ll hear them, trust me. Another little hidden treasure on "Southern Rain" is the last verse, which seems to have some sort of robotic manipulator singing some of the words.

This isn’t your typical Australian female acoustic singer-songwriter, and you can tell there has been a lot of experimentation inside the Sydney studio where it was recorded. Check out the womb-like qualities of the four-line song "The Fall" for an example of being ballsy and uncommercial yet completely appropriate. There are even some appearances by multi-instrumentalist Joseph Ireland a member of another well-known Townsville band, The Middle East, who provides some backing vocals and some distinctive banjo playing on "Autumn Swirl".

While the should-be singles like "Lua" and "Shaking in the Wings" are definitely highlights, it’s the other songs that require more attention that might have longer lasting appeal. The simplistic yet well-placed closer "Sunflower" is a nice little conclusion to the satisfying ten-track album, which I guess feels like a slowly erupting volcano of melodies. As far as first albums go, especially by someone so young, this should fill listeners with nothing but excitement with its uniqueness and most importantly it catchiness and relaxing qualities. It could be the perfect little album for a rainy Sunday afternoon, for fans of Feist, Sarah Blasko, Holly Throsby and New Buffalo – look no further for this hot new talent.

Review Score: 8/10
- The AU Review

On first impressions, some things on Kate Martin's debut record become immediately obvious. One of them being, its quite puzzling as to how a teenager coming from the relatively unknown Townsville could produce such a product. It almost sounds like Synthetic Shoes, Leather Boots is her fourth or fifth album, evident with the matured form of songwriting, creative arrangements and some delicate production values and techniques. Opening song "Lua" is beautifully sung and contains a highly catchy chorus that might sit nicely as a summer advertisement theme song, probably because it has that same addictiveness you’d find in a Feist, Sarah Blasko or New Buffalo tune.

"Let Your Troubles Sleep", is a dreamy little number that features ghostly backing harmonies. Harmonies you’ll notice seem to subtly squeeze their way into each song - listen carefully on this one and you can hear all sorts of crickets, and children’s percussion instruments. There’s a sort of rewarding quality to the record, as all the songs aren’t ultimately as catchy as the opener. The more effort you put into the listening, the more things you’ll find. As it turns out, Martin isn’t just a grand singer and songwriter; she’s also an amazing guitarist. Check out the finger-picking on "Shaking in the Wings", "Please and Thank You" or the Spanish-esque runs in "Southern Rain" - they’re hiding behind all of the echoes, piano arrangements and tambourine, but listen hard enough and you’ll hear them, trust me. Another little hidden treasure on "Southern Rain" is the last verse, which seems to have some sort of robotic manipulator singing some of the words.

This isn’t your typical Australian female acoustic singer-songwriter, and you can tell there has been a lot of experimentation inside the Sydney studio where it was recorded. Check out the womb-like qualities of the four-line song "The Fall" for an example of being ballsy and uncommercial yet completely appropriate. There are even some appearances by multi-instrumentalist Joseph Ireland a member of another well-known Townsville band, The Middle East, who provides some backing vocals and some distinctive banjo playing on "Autumn Swirl".

While the should-be singles like "Lua" and "Shaking in the Wings" are definitely highlights, it’s the other songs that require more attention that might have longer lasting appeal. The simplistic yet well-placed closer "Sunflower" is a nice little conclusion to the satisfying ten-track album, which I guess feels like a slowly erupting volcano of melodies. As far as first albums go, especially by someone so young, this should fill listeners with nothing but excitement with its uniqueness and most importantly it catchiness and relaxing qualities. It could be the perfect little album for a rainy Sunday afternoon, for fans of Feist, Sarah Blasko, Holly Throsby and New Buffalo – look no further for this hot new talent.

Review Score: 8/10
- The AU Review