Adrift. Awash. Asea in a floating, bobbing expanse of gorgeous harmonies underpinned by a slow and intricately picked guitar progression. Delicate in their ways but powerful and affecting nonetheless. Thats the feeling I get from listening to the voices of Taylor Holland and Heather Scott. Collectively called “Hawthorn“.
There is certainly a timeless quality to their music, perhaps harkening back to a time that wasn’t necessarily simpler, but we all can occasionally romanticize about. The beginnings of folk and roots music and the duo capitalizes on that emotion and aesthetic in their work beautifully.
“The first time I heard Taylor play Borderline, I thought it was an old folk ballad,” says Heather. “Everything from the structure to the story makes it easy to relate to.” Relatable indeed and taking a bit from the past to infuse it into their work in a contemporary setting. Fresh, but also music that is universally enjoyed.
“Like the old ballads we grew up singing around the campfire, it felt right to record this tune outdoors with just our voices and a guitar. There’s something in the simplicity that makes it easier for stories like this to be told, and heard,” Taylor explains about the choices for the arrangement and perhaps casting back to those influences the band embodies so seamlessly in a modern day outfit.
The track most recently comes off of the duo’s 9 song release from earlier this year titled Spun Open and the video is from a session (and earlier 4 track release) in the Arnold Aboretum filmed by videographer and friend of the two musicians, David Kinchen.
Check it out below and be sure to check Hawthorn out in the upcoming weeks. They perform as a part of the always wonderfully curated Barn Shows down in Manomet, MA (thats near Plymouth for you folks a bit more city bound) on 9/3 and perform the following evening in Cambridge at 5:15 PM as part of Passim’s campfire. festival weekend. Get out!