When your coven of Night Elves needs a soundtrack for its midsummer revelries, Larkspur is bound to be at the top of the playlist. Hailing from Charlottesville, this trio of sopranos has spent the past several years perfecting their three-part harmonies and cello-centric acoustic accompaniments. The result is a brand of folk that draws from Appalachian, Celtic, and pop traditions, dancing between gossamer melodies and haunting chants, all underscored with an ethereal intensity.
There’s movement and drama in every track of Larkspur’s eponymous EP, released last month after a successful Kickstarter campaign. These songs have a rhythmic quality that, in some curious manner, feels like a 21st century reincarnation of Enya with banjos instead of synthesizers. Recorded at Collector Studio in Norfolk, producer Jake Hull brought his film scoring sensibilities to the final arrangements with a delicate balance of bells, shakers, and other subtle atmospheric sounds. Despite the dreamlike lyrics, this isn’t music for drifting off to sleep—waking from a fever dream in a flowered forest would be the more appropriate setting. And wouldn't you know it? That’s exactly how we found Larkspur when we caught up with them for this photo shoot!
- Name? Larkspur featuring Annabeth McNamara, Laurel Humiston, and Renee Byrd.
- Age? Our median age is 30.
- Theme song? “Raining Life” from the movie Ferngully.
- Signature drink? Fancy vegan lattes that we make in our blenders with nut butter and adaptogenic herbs like maca and ashwagandha.
- Favorite movie? La Belle Verte, a French cult classic about humanoid aliens checking in on planet Earth from their small utopian garden planet.
- Inspirational band? We're inspired by Björk, Feist, The Roches, Joni Mitchell, Lykke Li, The Staves—we're basically aspiring to be the female Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young.
- Dream job? Being full-time recording artists and performers. Professional mermaids?
- Total crush? Johanna Warren—Portland-based trippy trance folk artist.
- Archenemy? Industrial animal agriculture.
- Hidden talent? We're all really good at mimicking foreign accents and creating silly characters to go along with them.
- Super power? Mesmerizing, hypnotizing, and entrancing with fairy sounds.
- Personal hero? Our mothers. Anyone who's out there working hard to create excellent original music.
- Go-to joke? We just make funnies on the spot with physical humor mostly.
- Secret wish? That Bernie Sanders is president.
- Love advice? It's OK to risk it all and have your heart broken to bits because then you can at least write great songs about it.
Larkspur will be performing in Bridgewater at the Spring Creek Supper Series (7764 Thomas Spring Road) on Saturday, May 12. Potluck and show from 7–10 PM, donations accepted. Hear their debut EP at larkspur.bandcamp.com.
Photography by Tristan Williams
