Joyce Martens – You Bring Me Home (2023)
Age has always been a tricky one: you might follow the suffragettes saying that all women regardless of age, race or creed, have the right to be heard. You might adhere to the stereotypical idea of hitting certain milestones by certain ages – the kids, house and loving spouse by 40. Either way, most believe there is a time when people are considered “too old” to do anything or pursue new ideas. Singer-songwriter Joyce Martens stands up with many others to say, “Well, stuff that!”
At age 42, Martens is a social worker, the mother of two kids, in a loving marriage, and pursuing her dream of music. Writing music since 2020, the Dutch artist has been playing for just about three years now and is turning heads across the globe. Following her debut track ‘Today’, she releases her sophomore single ‘You Bring Me Home’ – both tracks taken from her upcoming EP to be released later this year.
As with ‘Today’, ‘Your Bring Me Home’ has a simplistic sound layering her warm vocals atop a heartfelt piano. A soft drum emerges mid-way through bringing a heavier, denser element to ‘You Bring Me Home’; yet it seems to enhance the power of this acoustic piece of music. Interestingly, while there is a simplistic, barebones quality to the single, it has a kaleidoscopic crescendo with raw drums, piano and vocals fusing as a heart-stopping force, then a slip back to the soothing piano and vocals.
What I love about ‘You Bring Me Back’ is not just the gentleness combined with a powerful surge before settling down – it is the way the music expresses the poetic theme of the song. Exploring the ups and downs of a loving relationship, you receive the charm of joviality with an aggressive but vulnerable blast. Joyce Martens shares that ‘You Bring Me Back’ was written for her husband and “reflects what is important to her in love and relationships: being accepted for who you are and feeling safe enough to show your ugly side.”
Elegant, sophisticated and sincere, Joyce Martens wins our hearts (or at least mine) with ‘You Bring Me Home’.
For more from Joyce Martens, check out her Instagram and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
