When you see three stylish young women with instrument cases in downtown Tucson, you might figure they were packing Fenders and planning to plug in and rock out.
But the Silver Thread Trio is coming from a distinctly more delicate place.
The local act performs vintage folk songs in three-part harmony along with a growing repertoire of original songs. The result, more often than not, is pristine and haunting.
The women, who performed at the finale of the All Souls Procession, are recording their second album next week and have several shows scheduled, including a gig at Plush on Friday night and a patio date at Club Congress next Friday. It's quite a pace, especially since one-third of the trio is pregnant. Caroline Isaacs, 37, is due on Christmas Eve.
And it's not like they don't have other jobs. Isaacs is director of the Arizona chapter of the American Friends' Service Committee; Laura Kepner-Adney is a jewelry maker who tends bar at the Rialto Theatre; and Gabrielle Pietrangelo, 32, teaches music at Borton Elementary School.
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But their dedication to music is strong, says guitarist Kepner-Adney, who is 28. And because they strive for a flawless performance style, it helps that all three are perfectionists, she added.
"The key element is practice," she said.
"We meet usually about six hours per week, in addition to practicing on our own. Once the harmonies and instrumental parts are down, that's when we can finally add the little elements that turn a song into music. Intuition comes from years of that much practice and just getting to know each other so well as musicians."
The trio had a great springboard for their work together, having met in the Old Soul Sisters, a large vocal ensemble that was directed by Pietrangelo.
The three women were inspired to create a smaller, and therefore more practical group out of the desire to do something more focused.
"Originally, we were doing a lot of classical pieces, with the goal of playing weddings and bringing home some cash," Kepner-Adney remembered.
"Our style slowly developed, and we realized that we were more interested in the dark side of old folk music and Americana in general."
And while songs about love lost aren't typical requests at weddings, the trio has found a sense of artistic gratification, writing and performing slightly darker songs.
Said Kepner-Adney: "We work primarily with traditional American or English folk songs. I like to say that my favorite thing about folk music is that it lends you the flexibility to make sad songs sadder. We do our own arrangements to make the songs our own.
"We also draw from those songs to write our own."
Where their first album focused on the trio's own versions of traditional Americana songs, their next album will be a mix of originals and covers. Though they are recording this album at Loveland Studios in Tucson and putting it out themselves, the group acknowledges the opportunity that was given to it by its first label, Old Bisbee Records.
The label, based in the artsy town of the same name, is owned by Stuart Oliver of the Dusty Buskers, a folk-bluegrass duo.
"Stuart has been a huge supporter ever since we started," Kepner-Adney said. "I think his vision of Old Bisbee Records included us as one of the original groups (we were the third recording on the label)."
Most new groups don't have the funding to create a quality product, and "Stu made that happen for us," she said.
And while they appreciate every nudge in the right direction they've received, they have earned a name for themselves (and a few Tucson Area Music Awards) through hard work.
The Silver Thread Trio is enthusiastic about their future and their chances at fulfilling a particular dream: performing on "A Prairie Home Companion."
The public radio staple will broadcast live from the Tucson Convention Center on Jan. 30.
A popular, nationally broadcast show that glorifies folk music and good, old-fashioned moxie? The Silver Thread Trio was made for such a golden gig.
Are you listening, Garrison?
