Whether fact or fiction, the Kate Hinote Trio uncovers buried emotions on Stowaways.
The Metro Detroit group explores everything from longing to disappointment to grief on its latest indie-folk album.
“These songs came out less like poetry than my typical lyrics because I was very focused on telling a story each time,” said Hinote, the trio’s vocalist and one of its songwriters.
“We wanted each one of these songs to be like a window into another world. We wanted the stories to be clear, and I didn’t want to be too vague about what I was saying.”
The 10 new original tracks featured on Stowaways are anything but vague. Many of the tracks include a vivid storyline about a protagonist examining the purpose of a relationship and the intense feelings that accompany it.
“One of the big differences in writing this record with Matthew is that he’s also a songwriter who’s been composing his own songs on his own for decades,” said Hinote, who co-wrote six of the album’s tracks with violinist Matthew Parmenter and one with guitarist David Johnson.
“The lyrics and story are very important to him, and we always talk about ‘What’s the story here? What does the song mean? What will it mean to others when they hear it?’”
The trio’s lyrics range from fictional to personal and encourage listeners to process their relationships alongside them. Those sonic experiences are further heightened by Hinote’s enchanting vocals and Parmenter and Johnson’s vibrant acoustic instrumentation.
To learn more, I spoke with Hinote about the inspiration behind the trio’s latest album.
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