Music Like Lemonade

Country folk band Dear Lemon Trees is more than a balanced collage of solo artists gone trio. Their music is a glass of homemade sun tea on a hot Southern porch, a match made in countryside heaven.

It’s impossible to avoid flashbacks to the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack while soaking up the lush voices of Kathleen Grace, Leslie Stevens and Jamie Drake (and their microphone, named Louise). Each woman rotates between lead singer and supporting vocals and plays acoustic guitar, banjo or tenor guitar.

The girls make the circus act of changing pace, instruments and vocals into a subtle, natural flow, a skill they learned from their individual pasts with traditional country and folk music.

“We have this history of being songwriters,” Drake says. “Being friends for a long time and creating music for a long time, it’s been an organic process. We go song by song.”

The melodic richness the trio kindles on stage is contagious. The three stoic yet gentle women huddle intimately around their ear-trumpet microphone, exchanging glances like a childhood secret.

“We do that a lot, actually,” Drake laughs. “A lot of the eye contact moments are when we’re really connected as a group, really enjoying each other and those musical moments. There’s so much trust that we have with each other.”

When the women hit that perfect harmony, Drake explains, it feels like a warm vibration — a moment that comes from relentless arranging, tuning and practicing the intricacies of seemingly simple songs.

Dear Lemon Trees released their first EP, Gravity, in February, and the girls are working on releasing a full-length album, which will be packed with harmonies akin to “a soaring eagle,” Drake says.

Delve into musical moments with Dear Lemon Trees 7 pm Wednesday, June 16, at Territorial Vineyards or 8:30 pm Sunday, June 18, at the Axe and Fiddle in Cottage Grove. Both shows are SOLD OUT.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!