Patty Larkin’s Natural Evolution

Patty Larkin’s soulful, contemporary brand of music is easily woven into things like latenight public radio shows, compilation albums and supper parties. It’s there she makes her strongest mark, with tunes that catch the ear so well, you’ll find yourself Googling or Shazaming to learn just who is making this music. This is how she’s found her way onto the soundtracks of movies like David Duchovny’s Evolution and Kristin Scott Thomas’ Random Hearts — not to mention into a career that’s already stretched more than 30 years.

ASPIRATIONAL ALONENESS

Larkin’s current album, Still Green, was written when she sequestered herself in a rustic shack in Cape Cod, Mass., for several months. The environment soon turned into another player on her tunes.

“A typical day there starts early,” Larkin explained. “And the days are long, with little to distract you. You light the small wood stove if it’s chilly, do chores like filling the water jugs from the hand pump outside. So there’s plenty of time to be alone and, when you hit a wall, there’s nobody to call or email, so you just take a break.”

FINDING FOLK

After those breaks came the music, which Larkin said was largely inspired by the happenings near her temporary abode, from the slamming of the screen door to the visiting bees.

“I just kept going back to the sounds I was hearing,” she said.

The results were tracks still firmly in Larkin’s adult-folk-pop mode like “Soon As I’m Better” and “Because of This,” but that are also more reflective and spare than she’s showed her audience before, with less guitar and with backing vocals from friends Merrie Amsterburg and Jonatha Brooke.

“These tracks stayed with me and became part of my live shows in the months that followed,” Larkin said.

BREATHING BACKWARDS

After her retreat was over, it was time to take her tunes to the recording studio, Q Division in Boston, to craft her album, which ended up being something of a culture shock.

“Going from there to the recording studio is like going from a beautiful plate of food set before you to viewing a slide under a microscope,” Larkin said. “It’s a much less appealing, much more exacting environment; the challenge is to breathe the life back into the material in that setting.”

She called on her producer Mike Denneen to help her make the transition.

“He was the perfect person to make that happen,” she said. “I had recorded the basic tracks in my own studio on Cape Cod, so when I brought the material to Q Division it was just about what to add.”

RIVETING REVIEWS

Once the process was complete, Still Green immediately started collecting solid reviews; the Chicago Tribune deemed it “riveting,” while the Boston Globe called the set “wild perfection.” Larkin will promote the set with East Coast and Midwestern dates this spring and summer, including a stop in Boyne City.

“I have been to Traverse City and the Blissfest in the past, too, so I am aware of the beauty that abounds in northern Michigan,” Larkin said.

Next up for the busy musician is writing for a new project, playing festivals and teaching a week-long lyric workshop in August.

“I’m looking forward to a varied and interesting summer,” Larkin said.

Patty Larkin will perform at Freshwater Studio in Boyne City on Saturday, Mar. 26 at 8pm.

For more information or to reserve tickets, visit freshwaterartgallery.com or call (231) 582-2588.

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