Martin got her start singing opera while attending Eastern Illinois University in the late '90s. Her father was a respected professor in the music department, and naturally Martin followed his footsteps. She began playing piano when she was a little girl and her childhood was surrounded by music.
While attending school, Martin experienced "real life," from living with her goth roommate and dealing with typical college-like drama to the tragic suicides of two close friends. Martin turned to music for solace. She desperately wanted to make music into a career; therefore, a whirlwind move to Los Angeles seemed like the right thing to do.
Martin eventually made a record, One Girl Army, with producer Tom Rothrock (Badly Drawn Boy, Beck, Elliott Smith), but it was never released. Before 2002 came to a close, Martin got her own studio and recorded a new batch of songs with Ken Andrews (Air, Pete Yorn). The melodic dreamscapes of In Parentheses arrived in August 2003 and Martin's bright voice drew comparisons to Fiona Apple and Kate Bush. Dates with Howie Day and Damien Rice also coincided with the release of the EP.
On Your Shore followed in 2004. Unfortunately, Martin's relationship with RCA proved creatively trying as the singer/songwriter continued writing and recording new material. A decision to leave the major label in 2005 allowed Martin to accomplish her creative goals, thus reconnecting with Test-Drive Records to issue the Veins and Darkest Hour EPs before the year's end. Additional support dates around North American followed into the fall, and Martin rounded out the Veins tour with her first DVD recording, the limited-edition Something Like a DVD.
She also married her long-time collaborator and co-producer, Ken Andrews (Pete Yorn, Year of the Rabbit, Failure), in the midst of recording her second album, Stromata. The album arrived on Martin and Andrews' own Dinosaur Fight label in September 2006.
In 2009, Martin released the instrumental album Piano Trees, a collection of improvised piano songs.
In 2011, Martin released her album, Dancing on Needles.
In 2014, Martin released Water Breaks Stone.
On October 5, 2018, Martin released the second of her instrumental piano albums (after Piano Trees), entitled Clear Blue Sky. The following year, in 2019, two more albums in a similar vein were released: Monotonous Night on March 8 and Dawn on December 27.
http://www.charlottemartin.com
Darkest Hour
Charlotte Martin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Waiting to hold nothing cause
Everyone knows nothing's much easier to touch
So I want,
I tried for a love
That buried me under his shrug
No one sees or cares if I'm on my
Closet floor
Shh there's something
Outside my door
Making a little heat
It's getting warm
It said 'even in the darkest hour you shine'
It said 'even in the darkest hour you shine'
Loaded on
Layers and coats
Try to stand up, oh there I go
Down again
God it has been so long
Now I am marching in place
Pretending to say this all to his face
But you know, my guts they may never come
I shake, shake from holding back
Someone's trying to get me back on track from my spiral
You know even in the darkest hour we shine
You know even in the darkest hour we shine
It'll save you when no one will ever try
And I got answers super-glued under my knees
You know you gotta get me, out o'mye eye eye roooom
Outta my my my roooom
And off my closet floor
Shh there's something outside the door
Making a little heat
You're getting warmer now..
And even in my darkest hour you shine
Even in my darkest hour you shine
Charlotte Martin's song "Darkest Hour" is a powerful and emotional piece that tackles the theme of resilience and hope in the midst of struggles. The opening lines, "Waiting I'm, waiting to hold nothing cause, everyone knows nothing's much easier to touch" seem to describe a sense of resignation and hopelessness that the singer feels. She has given up on love and looking for something tangible to hold onto. The subsequent lines, "So I want, I tried for a love that buried me under his shrug, no one sees or cares if I'm on my closet floor" suggest that she has been hurt and rejected, and is in a state of despair. The words "closet floor" signify a private, hidden place where one retreats in times of distress but is an uncomfortable place to be.
The chorus offers a message of solace and encouragement that comes from an unlikely source. There is something outside the door that is making a little bit of heat, and it offers the reassurance that even in the darkest hour, she shines. The repetition of the line "You know even in the darkest hour we shine" points to the idea that the singer is not alone in her struggles and that there are others who shine even in the darkness.
The song portrays the fight between wanting to give up and wanting to hold on. It captures a feeling of being lost, while simultaneously encapsulating the strength to survive in the face of despair. The line "even in my darkest hour you shine" brings light to the situation, showing that even in the depth of darkness, there is hope.
Line by Line Meaning
Waiting I'm
I'm sitting here waiting.
Waiting to hold nothing cause
I'm waiting even though I know it's pointless.
Everyone knows nothing's much easier to touch
I think everyone knows that it's easier to deal with surface-level things.
So I want,
Even though I know it's pointless, I still want something more meaningful.
I tried for a love
I've tried to find love.
That buried me under his shrug
But the person I found didn't care about me.
No one sees or cares if I'm on my
No one pays attention to me or cares about what I'm going through.
Closet floor
I'm sitting alone in my closet.
Shh there's something
I hear something outside my door.
Outside my door
There's something out there that's making me feel scared or uncomfortable.
Making a little heat
Whatever's out there is making me feel anxious or uneasy.
It's getting warm
The situation is getting more intense and uncomfortable.
It said 'even in the darkest hour you shine'
I heard a voice or a message that said even when things are tough, there's still something good in me.
It said 'even in the darkest hour you shine'
The message repeated, reminding me that there's something special about me, even when things are tough.
Loaded on
I'm weighed down by
Layers and coats
My emotional baggage.
Try to stand up, oh there I go
I try to move past my issues, but I just end up falling back down.
Down again
I'm back to where I started.
God it has been so long
It's been a long time since I've been able to move forward.
Now I am marching in place
I'm stuck in one spot, unable to move forward or backward.
Pretending to say this all to his face
I imagine telling someone how I feel, even though I know I can't do it in real life.
But you know, my guts they may never come
Even though I want to speak up, I may never be able to.
I shake, shake from holding back
I'm physically shaking because I'm trying to hold back my emotions.
Someone's trying to get me back on track from my spiral
Someone is trying to help me get back on course after I've been spiraling out of control.
You know even in the darkest hour we shine
The voice or message reminds me that even when we're at our lowest point, there's still something good in us.
You know even in the darkest hour we shine
The message repeats, reinforcing the idea that we can still be happy even when things are tough.
It'll save you when no one will ever try
The idea that there's something special in me will be enough to get me through even when no one else is there for me.
And I got answers super-glued under my knees
I have all of the answers to my own problems, but they're stuck inside me and hard to access.
You know you gotta get me, out o'mye eye eye roooom
I need help getting out of my own head.
Outta my my my roooom
I need to get out of my own head and out into the world.
And off my closet floor
I need to get out of my closet and face the world.
Shh there's something outside the door
Even though I'm scared, I need to face whatever's out there.
Making a little heat
I'm feeling a little bit more confident.
You're getting warmer now..
I'm slowly starting to feel better and more confident.
And even in my darkest hour you shine
I remember the message I heard earlier, that even when things are tough, there's still something good in me.
Even in my darkest hour you shine
I reinforce the idea that no matter how tough things get, there's always something special in me.
Contributed by Alexander T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.