The duo comprise multi-instrumentalist sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell and with Texas-bred musician Tyler Bryant–Rebecca’s husband–co-producing the 11-track record, the whole process has been a family affair.
Traversing themes such as family bonds and self-empowerment, the album is a ferocious and soulful journey showing how Larkin Poe are breathing new energy into the Southern Rock ’n’ Roll genre and shaping its identity.
After finding their love for music when they were around three years old, the sisters have an intense passion for what they do which exudes in every release.
Alongside their busy tour schedules, the pair have posted over 100 stripped-back covers to their YouTube channel with songs from artists such as Seal, Black Sabbath, and The Bee Gees to name a few.
House Of Solo spoke to Larkin Poe on their fierce new release, things they have done differently with this album, and what’s next for the sister pairing.
Hi Rebecca and Megan, your new album ‘Blood Harmony’ is out now via your label, Tricki-Woo. Can you please tell us a bit about your inspiration behind the album and what it means to you? Did you go into the creative process with an idea already in mind or did you build it from the ground up?
Megan: Energetically, we’ve taken some big leaps forward with ‘Blood Harmony’—we delved deeper into our creative collaboration as sisters and allowed authenticity to guide the recording process. Thematically, we wanted this album to feel like a homecoming and I think we achieved that goal.
A few personal favourites of mine from the album are the opening track, ‘Deep Stays Down’ and ‘It Might As Well Be Me’. Do you have any particular favourites from the release? Are there any tracks that mean more to you than others?
Rebecca: ‘Southern Comfort’ is a special one to me. In a lot of ways, it represents a real turning point in my own self-acceptance as a songwriter, I think self-acceptance is also mirrored in the lyrical content of the song. Learning how to define, accept, and embrace my own “southernness” has been, and continues to be, a lifelong journey.
Can you talk us through a few themes you explore within this new body of work?
Megan: Family bonds (as heard on ‘Blood Harmony’), self-acceptance (‘Southern Comfort’), self-empowerment (‘Bolt Cutters And The Family Name’), and the joy of communing through music (‘Kick The Blues’).
With this being your sixth studio album, I’m intrigued to know how you both feel you have progressed as people and artists over the course of your career so far. Are there any things you have done on this album that you maybe wouldn’t have on your second or third release?
Rebecca: In a bid to secure absolute creative freedom, we started our own record label in 2017. Above all else, that decision has wound up being one of the best decisions we have ever made—being able to self-produce our albums and experiment wildly has been a gift; it has allowed us to cover a lot of ground and test our boundaries as artists. With ‘Blood Harmony’ I feel like we stepped into the recording process with a lot more confidence to just be ourselves, without double-stacking guitars or background vocals.
You both have wonderful voices that blend so well together. I read in a previous interview that you found music at around three years old, initially playing classical violin and piano before discovering your love for American Roots music. Where do you think you both would be now had you not found your passion for it?
Megan: Music has always been a passion for us but, had we not started playing bluegrass together as pre-teens, I honestly don’t know that we would have wound up as touring musicians; it’s certainly been a wild ride.
As a sister duo in the industry, I’m interested to know how you feel you benefit from embarking on your careers together. Do you come across many downsides when working with your sister?
Rebecca: Our sister relationship is integral to the band and 100% drives our capacity for making music together as a team. It’s certainly taken a lot of work over the years to build healthy habits of communication and to learn how to genuinely accept our differences and celebrate one another’s strengths and weaknesses, but the work is worth it. We’re soul-deep at this point.
Social Media is an instrumental part of a lot of artists’ progression in the industry these days. The two of you have posted over 100 covers to your YouTube channel featuring songs from Black Sabbath, The Bee Gees, and Seal and others. How did the idea to start creating these covers begin? Do you still have a lot of songs you want to release your own versions of?
Megan: Originally, we kicked off our cover series strictly as a learning tool for our own musical growth; we certainly didn’t anticipate how much folks would enjoy the videos! And yes, we have so many backlogged songs that we’re excited to learn and share with folks as time allows…
Following on from that, if you could have any band or artist, dead or alive, cover one of your songs who would you love to have and why?
Rebecca: I would love to hear Ozzy Osbourne sing a slowed-down version of our song “Bad Spell”!
Having played a ton of shows since starting Larkin Poe in 2010 and also touring as backing musicians for a variety of other bands, you must have played in some incredible places. Do you have a favourite and are there any dream venues you wish to conquer in the near future?
Megan: I love Japan and have made some of my most favourite memories whilst touring through Tokyo and Osaka; but a bucket list venue would be Red Rocks outside Denver, Colorado.
Finally, what’s next for Larkin Poe?
Rebecca: More shows to play, more songs to write, more friends to make, more records to record—we’re lifers!
