Lula Wiles are a progressive string band -- progressive in their musicality and progressive in their social outlook. While the trio of Isa Burke, Eleanor Buckland, and Mali Obomsawin hardly eschew tradition -- they're proudly rooted in any number of Americana sounds that could be pegged as bluegrass or folk, although they deliberately side-step anything with a twang -- they re-assemble these familiar sounds in unexpected ways that seem even fresher when heard in tandem with their clear-eyed lyrics. All this was evident on their self-released eponymous 2016 debut but came into full flower on What Will We Do, their 2019 album for Smithsonian/Folkways Burke, Buckland, and Obomsawin all met while attending a camp in Maine. Initially, they weren't a band: all three were drawn to the joyous, communal spirit of folk music. All three attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, forming Lula Wiles while attending school. In 2016, they self-released an eponymous debut album which helped launch them onto the folk circuit. In 2018, the trio signed to Smithsonian Folkways, issuing What Will We Do the following year. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine