The Contrarian

Zack Martin is the multi-instrumentalist maestro behind Carrigan, a band some of you already know and love. Lately, Zack has turned his talents to film scoring, contributing an excellent soundtrack to the documentary The Way We Get By — a movie that’s scooped up tons of awards, has been aired on PBS and is now available to rent or stream on Netflix.

Zack’s full bio follows his list, which I’m very much down with. Thanks for remembering Unwound and Matmos, dude.

Dig it after the jump.

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Califone, Quicksand/Cradlesnakes
In high school, I was a big fan of Red Red Meat, and and Califone picks up were they left off —  in many ways they’re much better band. Califone have several good records but this one really did it for me. (This album is unavailable to stream, so here’s their 2006 effort, Roots & Crowns.)

Unwound, Leaves Turn Inside You
This took some time to really grow on me. Such an underrated album/band. (Not available for streaming, surprise, surprise.)

Matmos, The Civil War
A very odd mash of experimental electronic music and Medieval-like folk music. It goes “fife and drum” sometimes as well. Doesn’t sound good on paper but it’s a great record. Very different.

Radiohead,  Kid A
It was a bold shift from their original sound and the acclaim of OK Computer but it paid off. Radiohead doesn’t really make bad records but this one is exceptional.

Mouse On Mars, Niun Niggung
This would make my top five best electronic albums of all time. It’s extremely quirky with genius production. A lot of electronic musicians are boring and stale live but I saw them on this tour and they were incredible. (Again, not available to stream, but here’s a release from the previous decade).

Grizzly Bear, Yellow House
For some reason their “lo-fi” sound can’t capture their incredible drummer. I’ve seen them live and he shines in that setting. Superb record regardless. Great songwriting here. (No IDEA why this isn’t streamable, but here’s their 2004 release, Horn of Plenty.)

Dungen, Ta Det Lugnt
Most “throwback/retro rock” bands make me want to wretch but Ta Det Lugnt is an exception.  I get a bit annoyed at the “wailing guitars” sometimes but good songs are good songs.  I even like the flute solos. What the fuck am I turning into…?

Neko Case,  Blacklisted
I don’t know if you can call this “alt-country.” From what I know I don’t care for “alt-country.” I never even got into Wilco etc. That stuff can bore me to tears. Blacklisted definitely has a country or Americana influence, but  no matter what contemporary genre Neko belongs to, her voice is amazing and the songs are great.

Boards Of Canada, Geogaddi
I love everything these guys put out. (Not surprised that you can’t hear to this, as they aren’t on any of the listen on-demand services.)

Portishead, Third
I was never really a big fan of Portishead. Then again, I’ve been known to be a bit stubborn and painfully selective with music I like.  I gotta be honest… the turntable scratching always bugged the shit out of me. I think it’s a legitimate form of musical expression but I just didn’t think it worked with the band. Third has no turntable. It’s very dark and has an amazing stripped-down production value. I love how this record sounds.

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Zack Martin has been a professional musician for the past 16 years. He studied percussion and guitar in jazz, rock and experimental music. Zack is best known for being the driving force behind the band Carrigan, which has a large following around New England — especially the Boston area. Zack has worked with various artists to create an eclectic music portfolio, and is known for his cinematic music style. He has performed and toured with a number of bands including Muncy Indiana’s BRAZIL, Drowningman and The Cancer Conspiracy.

In 2003, Carrigan released its debut self-titled EP. In 2006, the second recording, Young Men Never Die, was released on Boston’s Radar Recordings. Zack recently signed with Hello My Name Is Records. Carrigan’s music can be found on iTunes.

Recently Zack has been scoring for film. He has worked for PBS FRONTLINE and composed the soundtrack for the recent award winning documentary The Way We Get By.