Martin Courtney // Real Estate

“Songwriting can be painstaking, which is why I’m now trying to plow through it when I write.”

Martin Courtney of Real Estate says that songwriting can be a "painstaking" process, so he's trying something new. "I'm trying to plow through it, take a step back, then chip away at it," he told me. Courtney has also found fulfillment in writing about the small details of everyday life. These two elements are part of a larger retooling of Courtney’s process that emerged during the pandemic, when loss of work made him question his very identity as a songwriter. Since then, he’s been aiming for a “looser” songwriting process where he agonizes far less in the initial stages and instead just writes.

But he always has Strega Nona to fall back on. I have four kids and Courtney has three; that’s a lot of children’s books between us. So when I asked Courtney about his reading habits, naturally we started discussing children’s books. We agreed that Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola was a mutual favorite. (I was sad to learn when writing this piece that dePaola died in 2020 after complications from a fall.) Courtney is a heavy reader to be sure, but he’s also found a way to incorporate references to children’s books into some Real Estate songs.

Martin Courtney’s new album is called Magic Sign, out now on Domino Records.

*Photo by Sinna Nasseri