With the 2014 formation of I'm With Her, singer/songwriters Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O'Donovan, and Sara Watkins introduced an essential new force into the world of folk music: a close-knit alliance of highly esteemed musicians, each graced with a deep understanding of folk tradition and unbridled passion for expanding its possibilities. Since delivering their critically lauded debut See You Around and standalone singles like "Call My Name" (winner of the 2020 Grammy for Best American Roots Song), the trio have routinely taken time out from their individual careers to dream up songs together--eventually arriving at a new album exploring themes of ancestry, lineage, and the collective human experience. On their long-awaited sophomore LP Wild and Clear and Blue, I'm With Her now bring their luminous harmonies to a soul-searching body of work about reaching into the past, navigating a chaotic present, and bravely moving forward into the unknown.
In a departure from the stripped-back intimacy of See You Around--a 2018 release that turned up on best-of-the-year lists from the likes of the New York Times--Wild and Clear and Blue centers on a far more elaborate sound informed by the trio's intensified sense of musical kinship. All multi-Grammy-winners with deep roots in the folk scene, Watkins, Jarosz, and O'Donovan first discovered their near-telepathic chemistry during an impromptu performance at the 2014 Telluride Bluegrass Festival, then co-founded I'm With Her and began touring extensively and performing at acclaimed festivals across the globe.
Produced by Josh Kaufman--a member of Bonny Light Horseman and multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/arranger/producer who's worked with Bob Weir and The National--Wild and Clear and Blue ultimately adds a bold new urgency to their delicate entangling of lived-in narrative, fable-like storytelling, and nuanced reflection on cycles of life.