Closer Than You Know

Editors’ Notes Pete and Maura Kennedy established themselves as independent-minded singer/songwriters with a power pop jangle over the past two decades, receiving the thumbs-up from none other than The Byrds' Roger McGuinn. However, after assembling Retrospective—a summary of their career to date—the duo switched up their approach, crafting chords lifted from the French classical composers Debussy and Ravel and finding a way to fit their own melodies and lyrics. The result is their most dreamlike release. Remnants of Americana can be heard in the instrumentation, but a tune like "Rhyme and Reason" sounds more like a mix of Burt Bacharach and Belle & Sebastian than the usual suspects. "Big Star Song" pays tribute to legendary underground hero Alex Chilton. "Wild Honey," a U2 song from All That You Can't Leave Behind, is transformed into an acoustic folk-pop tune as Pete Kennedy provides Maura with sublimely layered acoustic guitar lines. The Kennedys have unlocked possibilities that give their harmonies new ground to travel.