Lanue

Feeling detached from her previously released work as years lapsed, Duluth, Minnesota’s Sarah Krueger set out to Hive, a small studio nestled near the river in her hometown of Eau Claire, WI. In the course of two separate sessions, (the first on the cusp of a long winter, and the second on the fringe of summer’s swell), Krueger assembled a cast of collaborators to help flesh out a collection of songs that would later become the catalyst for Lanue. Culled from the title of a poem that found its way to Krueger from a thrift store shelf, Lanue comes to us as a project that stands firmly in front of a fresh creative backdrop and boasts a more developed taste and sincerity than Krueger’s previous releases — both a welcome departure and anticipated return. In Lanue’s self titled LP (2021), Krueger continues to amplify her knack for straightforward and earnest songwriting while maintaining a vocal delivery that sits like honey over layers of warm synths, guitars, and percussion. Ranging from confessional to nostalgic, each track is brightened by a lush lift while continuing to rest inside the framework of the folk tradition. Krueger enlisted collaborators Steve Garrington (Low) and Sean Carey (S. Carey, Bon Iver) to assist with production and instrumentation while relying on JT Bates (Pieta Brown, Taylor Swift) on drums, and Ben Lester (Field Report, Sufjan Stevens) on pedal steel guitar. String arrangements by Ryan Young (Trampled by Turtles) and guitar work by Erik Koskinen round out the record so that it arrives at a place of stark honesty and inviting warmth.