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"It's not what you've got that'll get you to God," Mackenzie Howe, Kinsey Lee and Sharon Silva of The Wild Reeds sing on "Only Songs," the lead single of their new album, "The World We Built."
Except that, in their case, that might be a lie.
The captivating combination of their voices is to some, after all, a near-spiritual experience.
"I think that three-part harmony is something divine," Lee acknowledged to The Tribune in a phone interview ahead of the band's Saturday show at The State Room in Salt Lake City. "When the right notes are hit, we feel the vibrations — we literally feel our bodies vibrating."
With all due respect to bassist Nick Phakpiseth and drummer Nick Jones, who form a solid enough rhythm section, the standout characteristic of The Wild Reeds is unquestionably the lush and gorgeous harmonies constructed by the band's trio of vocalists.
They may sound like the most natural thing in the world, but in reality, it's taken a ton of work to make them seem that effortless.
"Often people will say, 'Oh, their sisterlike harmony.' Man, I wish we had a sisterlike harmony. It's been really hard — 'cause our voices are so unique — to get the blend we're looking for," Lee said. "The more time we spend together as a band, the more we talk to each other, our voices get closer and closer to one another, and we start recognizing inflections and stuff like that from each other."
The Wild Reeds are certainly getting their share of recognition from the music world.
Their sophomore album, released in early April, captured critics' attention for the growth displayed in songwriting and instrumentation. Acoustic guitar, banjo, harmonica and harmonium — picture the offspring of a portable pump organ and an accordion — all contribute to the group's frequent neo-folk and country labels, but an increased use of fuzzed-out electric guitars and the aforementioned Nicks make The Wild Reeds equally at home in the world of alt-rock.
Not a bad accomplishment, considering the band wasn't really intended to be a "band" to begin with.
"I never really thought the band was going to become a career for us. It was just a hobby and something really fun to do for a while," Lee said. "After two or three years, when the boys joined the band and Mackenzie joined the band, everybody came in with the intention of turning it into a career, and we stepped up our game and made it happen. But yeah, at first we were just backing each other up at open mics and having fun. I was going to school for advertising at the time and I never considered having a music career. It kind of all happened really organically, which is nice."
Lee, Silva and Howe not only alternate lead-vocal responsibilities, but also all contribute songwriting.
The former said her strength is writing ballads and structuring harmonies thanks to her church choir and vocal jazz group background. Lee said Howe's youth spent listening to classic rock has resulted in her composing "a lot of straight-up rock 'n' roll songs with really playful imagery in her lyrics." And, Lee said, "I always giggle when we're asked about our influences," because of the knowledge that Silva has transitioned from bubble-gum pop in her teen years to punk and metal now. That's led to a proclivity toward "emotional, anthemic songs."
That variety in approach and an ability to embrace their evolution have paid dividends.
"I think as our interests change and as we study more, it's really great to have three songwriters, because people are expecting us to write different music," Lee said. "I think the thing that keeps us cohesive is the fact that we have three-part harmony, but our music is always going to change, and that's really amazing for us. … We can really go anywhere."
Apparently even closer to … well, you know.
Twitter: @esotericwalden —
With Blank Range
When • Saturday; doors at 8 p.m., show at 9
Where • The State Room, 638 S. State St., Salt Lake City
Tickets • $15; Ticketfly