The Honey Dewdrops – Laura Wortman and Kagey Parrish – have wooed Baltimore audiences (and beyond) for the last decade, having released five records in that time.  They moved from their Appalachian Virginia home to Baltimore in the first half of the 2010s, quickly settling into and becoming Baltimore mainstays.  When not on tour, you can be certain to find either or both of them at shows supporting other local musicians, as well as lending their voices and instruments as often as requested. 

They released Anyone Can See last March, a record melting over with a kind of radical compassion, empathy being a constant motif. Throughout, the songs’ narrators worry about others (and possess the bravery to say it), they smile and embrace immigrants, or decry a society that devalues and/or monetizes life   (“Going Rate”).  These songs deftly mesh the personal and the political, destroying the notion that politics never belong in music; much the opposite, Laura and Kagey articulate that addressing the importance of being human, of accepting others, is the most important action. 

The Honey Dewdrops have a reputation for creating an air of spontaneity during their shows, and Anyone Can See captures that sense.  Live, they often choose an appropriate cover (or two) to reimagine a song; on record, they discovered a way to change Hank’s “Ramblin’ Man” and still preserve its stark beauty, its honest reflections on staying in motion to hide from a demon or two. 

As is inevitable, Baltimore itself features in these songs.  They laughingly paint the streets of Hampden on “Welcome to the Club”, as well as writing about the protests and ideas that surrounded Freddie Gray’s death on “Going Rate”. 

Anyone Can See is a record that invites the audience into the music.  So make sure you come see them sing these songs at The Creative Alliance on Friday; Laura and Kagey always make room for their audience. More information about the show and how to purchase tickets can be found here.