Christina Martin’s Sleeping With a Stranger is being called a sort- of coming of age record. She says that comes with a “reflection of experience,” and if practice makes perfect Martin must be getting close. “I’ve had a couple gos at it,” she says about her fifth release, from a car somewhere near Amherst. “Working with Dale [Murray], he’s getting stronger with every record. With my life, and with this album, I keep trying to get better…it’s part of my personality to always think I can do better.” Recorded at The Farm, her home studio in Port Howe, with her husband and collaborator Murray Stranger showcases not only her reliable alt-country style, but her gift for storytelling. This time she’s not just telling her own tales though, much of the narrative is inspired by people she’s met along the road, and stories that have moved her. “While the stories aren’t necessarily about my personal experience,” says Martin, “there’s a part of me in all of them.”
Wed Sep 12, The Carleton, 1685 Argyle Street, 8:30pm, $15 advanced/$20 at the door
This article appears in Sep 6-12, 2012.