Shovels & Rope talk dogs, marriage, guitars, drums, and Colorado

First formed in 2008, Shovels & Rope is a rock/folk/punk/Americana duo consisting of Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst…who also happen to be married.

I recently spoke with both Michael and Cary Ann, who were hanging out at their home in Charleston, South Carolina before hitting the road again (their current tour includes a stop at the Gothic Theatre on Fri., Dec. 13). We covered topics such as what it’s like to tour together as a couple (and as just a two-piece band), their history with the state of Colorado (and the music scene in Denver), and their new album Something Is Working Up Above My Head.

Below are highlights from our conversation.

Ron: You are two people who are romantically involved, and also in a band where it’s just the two of you. How do you make it work where you have that unique sound and so much energy? Do you find your relationship has stretched because you’re out on the road together?

Michael: There’s a lot to unpack in that, Ron.

Cary Ann: I’ll have a crack at it first, and Michael will want to dive in on this, too. So when we started out playing music together, our whole thing was born in just playing in Charleston’s bar scene to make money and enjoy ourselves. And we did variations of a guitar, an electric guitar and acoustic guitar.

But once we realized we had that kick or had a little percussion to add, we could send off and entertain the drunks, and also entertain people that actually like music. And we developed a reputation about town for being kind of folksy but kind of rowdy, and bringing that energy. And we were in our late 20s and early 30s. We were wide open, really big, unbridled energy.

But now, Michael’s assigned us many more instruments to play, so now our sound has expanded. We’ve added low end. There’s all of our hands and feet and mouths are all singing. Everything’s going, and we’re doing the max that we can achieve without ever having to force anybody to be in our band. Because there’s no amount of money that would ever want to be a third wheel in this rock and roll romance/marriage/touring situation.

Michael: Honestly, we’ve been doing it that way for most of the time that we’ve been a band. Once we got out of the bars and started playing theaters and clubs, we had graduated to at least kick and snare and some electric guitar. And we have a couple of synths on stage that we play with. The drummer will play one with their hand, and the guitar player will play a thing with their feet. Yeah, there’s a lot. We try to sound like a four-piece band, just being two people.

Back when you guys were doing your work with the Films and Borrowed Angels, I feel like, Cary Ann, you guys got together as just a side gig for Shovels & Rope, but you saw the future of what you guys were going to become. I feel like from the beginning, you felt that this is where you were going to be.

Cary Ann: I hope so. I knew that because we loved each other and we were already married when we officially started our band, it gives us to a way to have an alternate lifestyle that’s also traditional, where we could be together and possibly raise kids, blah, blah, blah. But the music part was fun, and it worked. And actually, we were always surprised, and maybe our egos were bruised at how much people gravitated to what we did together, versus what we were trying to do on our own. And I was like, ‘That serves our purpose, because conveniently, that works for our life.’

When you talk about making a partnership for life, what a great wagon to hitch up to somebody that can give you rock and roll as your lifelong gift.

And so I did see it. And selfishly, being a folk and a country folk-sided trad kid that came out from that scene, I wanted rock and roll so much in my life. I wanted to play rock and roll. I didn’t even know I was a drummer at that point. And I could see it, because selfishly, I wanted it for myself. And I think that’s a beautiful part of the musical relationship. That is part of just the bigger relationship. When you talk about making a partnership for life, what a great wagon to hitch up to somebody that can give you rock and roll as your lifelong gift.

Michael, you’re no stranger to Colorado. Your work with Tinkers Punishment when you were in Denver. Can you talk about the Colorado music scene back then – what it was like, and how you see it now?

Michael: We were underage in the Colorado music scene, the Denver scene, and it was really hard for us to get a gig. I was telling Cary the other day this story about when I was at UNC, and I fake-rushed a fraternity so that we could get a gig. And then we got the gig, and then I quit immediately. But it was hard to get a gig is my point. But….

Cary Ann: You got gigs after that, though.

Michael: Well, we got gigs, but there were places like Soapy Smith’s, the Soiled Dove. Some of these places were the little clubs around town, which we eventually started getting a little following, and Herman’s Hideaway, Lion’s Den, Cricket on the Hill.

I feel like it’s easier to connect now than it was back then. You would have to be out and physically see people, or meet people through somebody else. Now a lot of that is social media-based. And then a lot of the bands were a little bit older than us, but that’s when it was Opie Gone Bad and Carolyn’s Mother, those were some of the big names.

[The scene] exploded after I moved out to Charleston. There was the Lumineers and Nathaniel Rateliff and Gregory Alan Isakov, who we’re all buds with them. But we didn’t meet them until after I had already moved to Charleston.

Cary Ann: It worked out conveniently that we had family in Denver. We were in Denver a lot, so it behooved us to actually connect and make friends with Denver people and Denver musicians. And we’d met all the Denver musicians, not in Denver, like Michael said. But circling back, also, because we spent so much time in Colorado, we’ve been able to enjoy the music scene as consumer, as fans of the venues, and all of the action you guys get in your city.

I’m always astounded at how many venues are thriving in Denver. I know it’s a major city… Our city, Charleston, is much smaller… But on any given night, it’s just astounding how much music there is, and the city really goes out and sees it.

Michael: And great local bands. And it seems like the relationship between the city and the scene and the local acts seems really great, at least from where I’m standing. It’s a nice little place for a baby band to grow up. There are opportunities and community.

On your new album, I love the feeling that you guys have put into the title, Something Is Working Up Above My Head. Can you describe what the title means to you and why you picked it?

Cary Ann: Well, there’s two things at work here. There’s the idea of the spiritual aspect of it, that we’re part of some great blanket of existence where all of our atoms are actually touching each other. And there’s some great power that’s propelled it into action that we can’t know. And that could be something that’s working above your head.

It also, more literally, was founded in Michael’s restless experience, sleeping one night when there was scratching in the attic that was keeping him awake. Maybe it was a squirrel. He was going through his mind about “Is it something making a nest for its young?” Or whether it was a-

Michael: A trap for its prey.

Cary Ann: And not really knowing. The great unknowingness of our existence is the basis of that song.

You were talking about Gregory Alan Isakov a moment ago. There’s a song that you have on the album with him, and because this is Colorado and there are dogs everywhere, I have to ask about your “Love Song From A Dog.” It’s a beautiful song.

Michael: Thank you. Yeah, we were just writing that, or had just written it, when we went out with Greg on his tour to open. And so we were just trying it out on his beautiful and very listening and accepting fan base, and we didn’t know if it was good or not. It was just something we were kicking around. And we had had an overwhelming response from the audience each night about that song. It gave us a little bit of confidence and belief in it. And then when it was time to record it for the record, we just called up Greg and asked if he would like to lend his voice. Because he was a part of the growing of that song, whether he knew it or not.

If you are a dog owner, you’re going to love this song. Especially the video. I love that last shot of the video on the beach.

Michael: Yeah, that’s our old boy who’s no longer with us anymore on the shores of Lake Michigan and St. Joe.

I was watching your Tiny Desk Concert from 10-plus years ago, and I watched you guys switch off between guitar and percussion. Is that something you continue to do? Because Cary, I see you behind the drums and Michael, you on guitar for the most part.

Cary Ann: That’s an interesting question. At the beginning, we really were conscious about switching off and almost equally, making sure that I went to the guitar as much as Michael was at the drums. Over the years, partially because somehow I’ve written at the drums more, some of the songs that I’ve headed up have been written from the drums, so it puts me there more often. But I also enjoy it so much, and I’ve gotten comfortable at it. I won’t say good, because I’m good enough, and I feel really good when I do it, that I’m so happy to sit there and sing and play drums. That said, I feel like there’s a group of our songs that requires that I come over and play guitar. And I enjoy that, but over the years I feel less inclined.

Michael: I guess the majority of the set is mostly me on guitar and Cary on drums. We’ve just settled into that. Each of us feels a little bit more at home in those positions, but really, we’re all over the place. If we’re doing a headlining show, one of us will sometimes play piano while the other plays drums. Or there’ll be no drums, and both of us play guitar. We just like to mix it up and make it interesting, not only for the fans, but for ourselves as well.

Cary Ann: There’s a kinetic part of our show for a 90-minute set. Just listen to us going on and on. It’s nice for a dynamic shift to do whatever we can between the two of us to give a different array of sounds and an emotional arc that we can trace by just moving around a little bit.

Before I saw you guys, the first guitar-drums duo I can remember was Matt and Kim, and I was amazed at what they could do with just the two of them. I feel like you guys are doing the same thing…although I like Jack and Meg [White], also.

Michael: I mean, it starts with songs. But besides that, if you’re putting on a live performance, for one thing, there’s no fat there. There’s no extra. There’s nothing to get in the way. It’s like all the things that matter are poking through.

‘All the things that matter are poking through.’ I like that.

Well, we are going to see you guys here very soon. I think that you will change the feeling of Friday the 13th when you play the Gothic Theatre. Places like the Gothic and the Ogden are perfect for your kind of music.

Cary Ann: I love those clubs. I’m so excited to get back there, and we’re going to be sticking around. We’re going to be lurking around Denver for Christmas this year.

Michael: Stick around for a couple of weeks, and we’ll be around. Look out.

We’ll look for you walking down the street.

Cary Ann: Yeah. Maybe we’ll be ringing a bell on the side of the street, singing a little jolly song.

Shovels & Rope play Fri., Dec. 13 at the Gothic Theatre in Englewood, Colo.