The Honey Dewdrops

Fresh from their phenomenal win in this year’s A Prairie Home Companion nationwide music talent search, Kagey Parrish and Laura Wortman are gaining recognition as one of the country’s leading twenty-something singer/songwriting teams.Performing on stage, The Honey Dewdrops’ “sweet kind of melancholy” echoes traditional American folk styles while reflecting the more modern sounds of country and rock.When it comes to composing, the duo strives for “relevant, meaningful songs.” Their tunes and words are efficient and simple, drawing from the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, where they live. Surrounded by this richness of old-time blues and bluegrass, Wortman and Parrish excel in “tight” harmonies and “thoughtful” (one reviewer called it “spectacular”) instrumentation.The Honey Dewdrops are in demand for personal appearances and, shortly after being heard by millions on American Public Media, they put final touches on their first EP.“Two voices and two guitars,” Wortman explains, “allow us to place primary emphasis on balancing the real tones produced from acoustic instruments with (but never overtaking) our own voices.”Wortman sings without affectation, cultivating a gentle but serious approach that leads her right to the heart of a song. When Parrish joins in on harmonies, his natural voice pleases and warms. It is this blending that allows them to say, virtually in unison, “We like to feel like old friends playing in your living room.”Early influences, they point out, include duos Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, Norman and Nancy Blake, Kate Brislin and Jody Stecher, and singer/songwriters Gillian Welch and Lucinda Williams.In addition to their own busy schedule, they continue to tour and support other artists, such as Walker’s Run, Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion, Pat Villines and Mattie Speece, Stacey Earle and Mark Stuart, Uncle Monk and The Biscuit Burners.