It seems it is another season of singer-songwriters, as they keep coming up with new releases more than in their 1960/70 prime. Yet, these days they seem to be stepping out of the ’standard’ voice/acoustic guitar, voice/piano and minimal backing, branching out into different genres and instrumental combinations.
West Texas-raised singer-songwriter Mart Thompson seems to root his music more into the psych/roots musical combination, taking quite a wide array of queues – from The Grateful Dead and other jam bands like Widespread Panic to touches of everybody – from The Beatles and Pink Floyd to his home turf heroes ZZ Top.
That is exactly the vibe listeners can get from his latest (fifth), the self-produced album Unwind, which probably uses more electric than acoustic guitars and has a very psych-influenced sound, quite evident throughout, particularly on tracks like “7 AM Stroll.”
Yet, what Thompson has done here is not just a simple combination of different musical influences, but a set of thoroughly assimilated sounds that he was able to skillfully combine and come up with something that sounds quite personal.
And it is on the musical ground on which not too many current singer-songwriters have tried to walk on, with Thompson’s steps being quite firm and assured.
