Old souls come to mind when talking with the Lovell sisters that make up Larkin Poe.







Though Rebecca (vocals, guitar) and Megan (vocals, lap steel) may only be in their middle 20s, the duo are seasoned professionals having spent nearly a decade touring and playing worldwide with the likes of Conor Oberst and Elvis Costello. And being descendants of Edgar Allen Poe, it is not surprising how very well articulate in both songwriting and conversation they are, well beyond a lot of their contemporaries.







Having started out playing Americana, Larkin Poe has evolved into a solid rock band with the release of 2016’s “Reskinned.”







The Swerve Magazine recently had the great pleasure of talking with the Lovell sisters about their time on the road, having Elvis Costello as a mentor and their evolution.







The Swerve Magazine: Just looking at the last couple years, it looks like you have spent the majority of them on the road.







Rebecca Lovell: Man, it feels like it. We have been lucky. We do spend a majority of our time out spreading the gospel, playing our songs on the road. We do a lot of touring internationally with a bunch of different folks. We feel really grateful.









SM: Not only have you been on the road a lot of the last couple years, you have toured with some pretty heavy hitters.





RK: Oh yeah.







SM: What has that been like?







RK: Being able to get out on the road and tour with some of our biggest heroes from Elvis Costello to Conor Oberst and even with Krist Bush of Sugarland. We feel like we have been able to learn so much and hone our stagecraft on all the tips and tricks we’ve been picking up from really seasoned veterans.







SM: That has to be something to be early in your careers to be able to watch and pull from such seasoned professionals.







Megan Lovell: It is incredible to have a front row seat to see somebody like Elvis Costello. We have been able to tour with him for years now. We have known him now for eight or nine years. So, it has been close to a decade of touring with Elvis Costello and that has been such a feather in our cap. It has been amazing. Amazing that somebody like that could be your mentor.







SM: I have to ask was that intimidating at the beginning to have Elvis Costello take notice and take you under his wing?







MK: I think we were very scared at first. But that is one of the best ways to learn, is to put yourself in situations where you are very uncomfortable. So, we have been uncomfortable with Elvis Costello many years (laughs). But now, we have cultivated a friendship with him as well. Now, it is so much fun. We have learned to play together, so effortlessly. It is like breaking in a new pair of shoes.







SM: That is a remarkably kind and generous act of him too to take an up-and-coming act and teach them what he knows from the years in the business.







RK: Absolutely. I think, generally speaking, you don’t get something for nothing in any realm that you work in. We really work hard and show up. I think that we bring a lot of enthusiasm to his projects. I think because of that because we do love what it is that we do, we love making music. We love learning other people’s songs. (We love) being musical chameleons. The fact that we really enjoy that and embrace it, I think makes him more inclined to call us back and keep us around. It is a symbiotic relationship. It is one that we cherish.







SM: That is an awesome relationship to have. You brought up being musical chameleons on your album “Kin,” demonstrates that beautifully. One song flows into the next. And they can be different styles of songs, but the album flows and it doesn’t jar you out of the moment.







RK: Thank you for saying that. I would say that “Kin,” it was actually our very first full-length record that we released, and to be able to get into the studio in one fell swoop and create a body of work, it was really refreshing to be able to sit down and try and figure out that flow. And very carefully select the songs that we were proud of and we felt were representative at the time and piece it all together like a little patchwork quilt. It is funny you mention that because, we’ve since re-released that record, “Kin,” as a compilation record of sorts and it is called “Reskinned.” I think it was a really interesting puzzle to solve of how to go back in and deconstruct and rebuild something, like a phoenix from the ashes, with these new songs. It was a good exercise. As an artist, you are always changing and growing, especially if you are doing your job. You are always changing and growing and figuring out what is next and what songs are the most real story that you can tell. So, to go back in and work five or six new songs onto the record for “Reskinned” was a fun challenge. And we are pleased.







I think if there is one thing that can be said about our career this far, the word would be ‘evolution.’ I think that we have been constantly evolving since the beginning. In the beginning, we were an Americana/string band. We morphed into, well, when you come to a show now, it is pretty much heavy rock and roll.







SM: Yeah, I noticed that with the new songs that you worked into “Reskinned”







RV: It feels right.







SM: And the flow of the album is still there.







RV: Thank you.







SM: With “Reskinned” being recently released with new songs, when do you find time to write new material since you are out on the road so much? Can you write on the road or will you need to take some away from touring to write?







RV: We write constantly. From all the different documentaries that we watched and different conversations we’ve had with different artists that we respect, the importance of writing is key. We have really taken that to heart. So whenever we are home for five minutes or, even, if we have a couple days off in a city, we will try to flesh ideas out to what feels relevant, what feels fresh or what feels right. I think it is really important to keep tabs. I think with, as you mentioned, us being relatively young in our career, we are not young in our career. We are young and based on that fact, our tastes are changing a lot right now. It is important for us to keep a finger on the pulse. It has been a really big touchstone for us to be writing, writing all the time.







SM: That segue ways nicely into writing and the Poe family name. You are the first musicians from the family tree. How did it feel to step out on your own as musicians?







RV: We love it. We are very lucky to have a family that is not only very supportive, but they are also great music lovers. Our dad has an incredible taste in classic rock and roll music and has always stressed the importance of songs and lyrics. We feel so lucky to have been brought up in a household that played music all the time. Even if they didn’t play, they were giving us a basis for music and a music education.







I think to be able to jump off into oblivion and lead such a non-traditional life because Megan and I have been absentee daughters, sisters, grandchildren, nieces, cousins since I was 15 and Megan was 16. It is something that has completely consumed us. There are pros and cons to everything, but for us, it really feels like the right fit. We get so much out of it. We love being itinerate. We love traveling and the songwriting and the practicing. If feels like we lucked onto the right highway.







SM: Speaking of sisters, I know you probably get on each other’s nerves at times, but it has to be nice to have that other person there as you go and experiencing the same thing that you are and have that support system with you.







RV: Truly.







MV. It is truly amazing to have spent so much time with the person that knows me the most intimately. We’ve been touring for the last decade. We were homeschooled before that. We grew up out in the country on a lot of land, so we have always been about as close as two people can be. So, it is amazing to be in business with that person.







Yes, we do get on each other’s nerves a lot. At the end of every nine-hour drive, we get down on our knees and we thank God that we got out of the car alive.







RV: I would say that Megan and I share one of the most important relationships that I’ll ever experience in my life. As sisters, as creative collaborators, as performers that share the same stage every night, it is a very unique bond. We, obviously, abuse it. We beat it up and we say nasty, mean things to each other, but at the same time, we do treat it with a lot of respect and a lot of love. It is something we feel lucky for.

