1 September 2025
Every Monday I will be bringing you an interview with an independent band, duo or music artist. This week, I caught up with Brighton based artist Peter Martin to find out more…
Where are you from and how did you first get into music?
I’m somewhere between a solo artist and a band as I do have a band who I always play with but I do write all the songs and do gigs solo too so maybe solo artist is most appropriate. I’m essentially from Brighton, I’ve lived here since I was 15. Before that my family moved country every 4 years for parents’ work. I first got into music learning piano as a 6 year old and watching ‘The Sound Of Music’ over and over again but got into it in a BIG way in my early teens when a friend introduced me to Radiohead.
Who were your musical influences when you were growing up and who are your influences now?
Growing up I loved Radiohead, Neil Young and Pearl Jam. Since then I’ve been through my hip hop era and my classical music era and find myself listening mainly to Cameron Winter and Djo recently.
How would you describe your sound?
Folk/alt. Folk because I love acoustic instruments and storytelling lyrics and alt because I often combine those elements with slightly more experimental songwriting and production styles that you don’t usually find in folk music.
What is your latest release called and what was the influence behind it?
‘Forgotten Again’ my debut album was influenced by artists like Bill Callahan and Cameron Winter. I have a follow up single ‘Birdy’ which came out on August 20th that I’m very proud of and would like to promote with this interview. It’s probably the happiest song I’ve ever written and wasn’t really influenced by anything in particular it just grew gradually out of a fun piano solo idea I had and a plan to write a simple song for my son.
What’s your local music scene like?
It’s great. There’s loads of talented folk/rock/indie bands playing shows regularly at venues like Folklore Rooms and The Hope. Plus super fun open mics at Paris House and The Bees Mouth.
What do you have planned for the next 12 months?
My plan for the next 12 months is mainly to write my second album and apply for funding to be able to record it in a studio. But failing that I’ll record it myself as I did with ‘Birdy’. I’ll also continue to gig around Brighton and London and building my fan base gradually.
Is there anyone you’d love to collaborate with?
I’m very happy just working on my songs with my band at the moment. I’ve got Melvin Vernet on the bass, Harry Key on guitar and Charlie Jenkins on the drums.
Any funny stories surrounding your live performances?
At the end of one of our songs we morph into singing Zadok The Priest by Handel in 4 part harmony which usually surprises people a little bit!
What is the one thing that you want readers to know about you?
I’ll always keep banging out the tunes so if you’re stuck for something to listen to check it out and more’s on the way!
You can find out more about Peter via Apple Music, Bandcamp, Instagram, Spotify, TikTok or YouTube.
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