Grapevine Music Agency - representing some of the finest roots musicians from the UK and North America. Folk, Blues, Country, Americana.
Larkin Poe
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As The Lovell Sisters these precociously talented young women took America by storm playing at the Grand Ole Opry, Telluride and a whole bunch of other top venues and festivals. Now still only 19 & 20 years of age they have launched themselves as Larkin Poe (backed by a brilliant 3 piece band) with 4 EPs in one year and performances with such stars as Elvis Costello and The Indigo Girls. 2011 will be their year!
“With the Dixie Chicks currently taking a break and the Court Yard Hounds lacking bite without Natalie Maines, Larkin Poe look set to enter from stage left and steal the crown.” Get Ready To Rock
“While featuring mandolin and dobro, this is not Bluegrass. Electric guitar, bass and drums don't make it Rock 'n Roll either. Un-pop like melodies and arrangements don't make it Jazz. iTunes calls it Folk, but that isn't it either. Take a bit of all of this and stir it up. In lesser hands it might be chaos. Larkin Poe turn it into a very smooth, well crafted piece of work. It's unique. It's about the songs, and the pleasure of making something beautiful for its own sake.” No Depression
“I don't normally do star ratings, but this one gets an easy 11.” Alan Wilkinson, Northern Sky
“My ears liked this album. My brain liked this album. If I were a younger man then my underpants would have liked this album. That’s three out of three so the future bodes well for Larkin Poe and you can quote me on that!” Bluesbunny
“Attempting a move away from their previous bluegrass approach, Larkin Poe are making the transition successfully, without entirely losing their heritage; there are elements of bluegrass here, but this is a move into soul and pop territory. And these girls have the vocal and song writing prowess to make a success of whatever genre they turn their hand to.” Americana-UK
“…nine tracks which effortlessly transcend many genre boundaries, incorporating elements of folk, Americana, country, and pop and stunning vocals.” Flyinshoes review
Larkin Poe is the evolution of The Lovell Sisters, who received critical acclaim for their albums, ‘Time to Grow’ (2009) and ‘When Forever Rolls Around’ (2006). Originally comprising three sisters – Jessica, Rebecca and Megan, The Lovell Sisters gained their first US breakthrough in 2005 after winning the Talent From Twelve To Twenty competition on the long running internationally-syndicated weekly radio show ‘A Prairie Home Companion’, which has more than 4 million regular listeners world-wide. Originally trained in classical violin and piano, when they first heard bluegrass, The Lovell Sisters were immediately smitten and chose to go in that direction, their natural talent for the genre being recognized soon afterwards. In 2006, Rebecca entered the mandolin contest at Merlefest, America's largest Roots Festival and won! Just fifteen years old, she is still the youngest person and only woman to have ever won the competition. The band then released their first album When Forever Rolls Around, before heading out on a busy schedule of concerts and festivals around the United States. Superlatives abounded, with the band frequently referred to as heirs to the Dixie Chicks. The band were so busy doing live shows, that they had no time to record any new material until 2009 when they released their second album ‘Time to Grow’, which received great reviews in the USA and Europe.
2009 was a big year for the Lovell Sisters - they played a number of the key US festivals, played in several European countries, Oprah Winfrey, MSN and Vogue called them "The next big thing", and Elvis Costello was so impressed he asked if they would support him and play as a part of his band on tour. ‘Time to Grow’ spent many weeks on the US radio charts, peaking at No.18, and in Europe the album was in the Top 10 of the European Americana charts for 3 months.
When the eldest sister Jessica recently decided to marry, return to college and take a break from music, it was natural for youngest sister Rebecca, now 19, to step into the lead role and create Larkin Poe, together with sister Megan. While flirting with pop and soul music more than ever, the roots/bluegrass influences remain strongly evident on their first release, the nine song mini-album, ‘Spring’. This went straight to No1 in the Euro Americana chart. The duo have just released their second EP ‘Summer’ in the States and ‘Fall’ and ‘Winter’ will follow in the next few months followed by a full CD in the spring!
ABOUT LARKIN POE
By: Rebecca & Megan Lovell
“We are sisters. We are music lovers. We are storytellers.
Every since we were little girls, we’ve been awed by the power of a story well told: from children’s books and bedtime yarns to figments and fairytales. Before we were able to read, we hounded our parents for “more stories!” and then, when at last we could; we began hounding the bookshelves.
Now, nearly a decade later, at 19 and 20, we’re still doing the same thing.
We’re still on the search for stories, and striving to learn how to tell them well. Now, we not only hound bookshelves, but also the people surrounding us. We search for stories of human experience, of love won and love lost, and of the million mundane things that make up everyday life.
Larkin Poe: the name of our great-great-great-grandfather; a man who survives in the memories and hearts of succeeding generations; a legend, a tall tale, a truly everlasting story. Just the thing that we hope to become.
Our musical journey, which began for us as children playing classical violin and piano at the ages of 5 and 6, continued through our teenage years as we toured internationally from 2005 to 2010 as The Lovell Sisters. This incarnation, which included our eldest sister, Jessica (www.lovellsisters.com), took us from the stage of the Grand Ole Opry to wonderful summer festivals such as Bonnaroo and Telluride, and even gave us the opportunity to collaborate with the likes of Elvis Costello. In January 2010, after saying ‘farewell’ to The Lovell Sisters, the musical story of our young adulthood has begun in the form of our new band, Larkin Poe.
Joined by Knoxville-based musicians, Daniel Kimbro (bass), Chad Melton (drums), and Mike Seal (electric guitar), we released our debut EP on February 17, 2010. Comprised of nine original tracks, the EP stretches many genre boundaries incorporating elements of folk, Americana, country, and pop.
Out of the box with a bang, we played our first gigs as a band on the Cayamo Cruise alongside artists such as Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, and Steve Earle. Immediately following the cruise, we toured Florida and Alabama opening for Brandi Carlile and the Indigo Girls. Since then we’ve played at Merlefest with Elvis Costello and at the Americana Music Festival in Nashville alongside Guy Clark, John Oates and Tony Joe White.”
UK TOUR DATES
November 2011
22nd The Institute, Kelvedon, Essex ,
23rd Pontardawe Arts Centre, Pontardawe, Wales
24th Barry Memorial Hall & Theatre , Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales
25th Park & Dare Theatre, Treorci, Wales
26th Ucheldre Centre / Canolfan Ucheldre, Holyhead, Anglesey/Ynys Môn, Wales
27th Galeri, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, Wales
28th The Slaughtered Lamb, London,
30th Theatr Mwldan, Ceredigion, Wales
December
1st The Prince Albert, Brighton