Seven Days: Vermont's Independent Voice

Troubadours du Jour

With commercial pop sounding ever more ersatz, the Seattle-based duo Two Loons for Tea stands out as loudly, clearly and eerily as its namesake waterfowl’s wail. Past albums have yielded comparisons to Massive Attack, the Cocteau Twins and Portishead, but for the people in the band, it’s what’s on the inside that counts. Lyricist-chanteuse Sarah Scott has an extra rib on one side of her chest like a physical manifestation of her propensity for colorfully offbeat communication — the lyrics for much of Two Loons’ new album _Nine Lucid Dreams_ were written by drawing random words from a bag. Guitarist-composer Jonathan Kochmer conducted biology PhD research at Yale in the field of speciation — appropriate, given the smarts with which he’s created his own selective hybrid of trip-hop, trance, jazz and rock. Catch them this Saturday in Morrisville with a full backup band.