June, 2003.

Which particular artists inspired you musically in your formative years?

Jackson 5, Prince, Eurythmics, The Sundays, Jane’s Addiction, Otis Redding, Joni Mitchell, alternative Seattle and SF bands.

Was Tricky your first involvement with music professionally? I am just now listening to Pre-Millennium Tension and it’s a challenging and highly complex performance by yourself. You chose this route (or perhaps it chose you?). Could you tell me the reasons and how do you view this musical experience in your make-up as an artist today.

Yes, working with Tricky was the first I’d done professionally. And thank you, it was a very exciting collaboration because we thought it would be terrible to do anything conventional. It was very much ideas done on the spur of the moment.

Great music usually reflects real emotions and experiences. What do the the Tricky albums say about you and your life then?

Sometimes in a track you represent chaos and other times it’s more like you represent the eye of the storm. Sometimes it’s just being mischievous and a bit of a windup.

You’ve chosen an interesting time to record and launch your album, in that UK female artists (at last) seem to be attracting attention again. Could you comment on this scenario and perhaps give your take on the why you think this is happening?

If this is happening, and it is remarkable to you, it probably means there are good records being released by good UK female artists and there probably weren’t before. You probably know better than I on that score.

What do you think makes a great artist?

Can’t say a link between artists I like has struck me, but I am drawn to voices. I don’t know otherwise. Engaging, brave, heart, soul. And lastly, skills.

Your new album appears to offer an intriguingly eclectic mix of musical styles. Could you take me through the writing and recording process, and in particular how you came to choose the songs for the album?

I started out with writing and production with Amp 9 who is my brother Nick’s writing team. Writing was very unpressured and free in the beginning with a combination of Nick’s songs and my songs and co-writes within the Amp 9 group. Then I worked with David Arnold on Stevie’s (Days Of A Gun). He seemed to really love the song (and said so a lot) and was very inspired and the whole thing was very satisfying to me with his strings. Then I worked with David Holmes whom I’d collaborated with before on his album Bow Down To The Exit Sign. He has great energy and works fast and is in love with music and ideas. He is always a real catalyst to work with and is a perfect collaborator because he sets you up with an idea which for me is always a little bit of a challenge, then he says here you go you do your bit.

Up to this point I never had that faith in me, or freedom or enthusiasm, so he did a huge amount for my confidence and forced me to prove to myself what I could do. Love him. Then Tricky, which was real fun and comfortable because it was familiar but I had this material for him to work with and comment on and it was a really lovely experience overall.

Then mixing which took 2×2 month sessions to complete where the real work of putting the album together began. That was with Jake Davis, Hugo Nicholson who I knew from working with Holmes and Tchad Blake. I also met a really talented programmer, Fabien Whaltmann in the first phase of working with Jake who really added beautiful elements to a couple of tracks.

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Which is your favourite song from the album and why?

Favourite is Ilya. It is the song that best represents me and is a blend of all the other tracks which are more like satellites representing one aspect each.

An intriguing aspect of the album is your collaboration with the guys from QOTSA. Could you explain how this came about and your motivations in the collaboration (in what will surely be a hit single…).

Thanx. I met Josh and Mark years ago and we’d individually all spoken about doing something sometime. Mark also sang on a song, Baca which didn’t make the album. I wanted to work with Josh because he was in one of my favourite bands, Kyuss, he is really talented really smart and sweet and funny. I’ve always loved Mark’s voice, just amazing they’re together on the same track because they both wanted to be on the album which was pretty much finished when they were on tour here in January and only had a few hours to get something down and this seemed like the most straightforward track to do. I’m really chuffed they’re on it.

As a solo artist would you still consider participating on albums by others?

Yeah, definitely.

With such a wonderful voice, what are your plans for UK live performances, and are you considering the USA? Tell me what it’s like for you performing live.

I’m really itching to go on tour now. I’m really in love with the people in my band. Rob Ellis is Mding and I’m so thrilled about that. It’s a lot easier to adjust certain parts of songs live than it is in the studio and quicker, so we’re all really excited about the potential of the band developing the songs.

What were your reasons for going to your chosen record label?

Best deal, they’re a mini major.

I wish you all the best Martina and can’t wait to hear the full album.

Thank you.

FOOTNOTE:

Since this interview, Martina’s debut album, QUIXOTIC, has been shortlisted for The Mercury Music Prize, 2003.