The Brother Brothers

The Brother Brothers trace their lineage to a longstanding custom of fraternal vocal groups that reaches well past the Everly Brothers, who rank as the chief inspiration for the Moss twins, Adam and David. Most such acts consist of siblings separated by several years, yet these two share an identical birthdate, a distinction that stands out as sharply as their understated, harmony-rich pop, which merges Americana textures with the earliest strains of rock and roll. Contemporary ensembles like the Cactus Blossoms summon a similar atmosphere, though the Brother Brothers consistently favor the quieter end of that range, a quality borne out by their first two long-playing releases, Some People I Know in 2018 and Calla Lily in 2021. They ventured even deeper into traditional sources on Cover to Cover, a 2022 set devoted entirely to material written by others.

Hailing originally from Peoria, Illinois, the Moss brothers began as string instrumentalists, with Adam on fiddle and David on cello. After completing a degree in cello performance at the University of Illinois, David settled in Austin, Texas, where he joined the band the Blue Hit, took up guitar, and began writing and recording solo work. At the same time Adam immersed himself in an array of fiddle styles spanning klezmer, bluegrass, and swing, appearing with East Coast outfits such as Session Americana and the Defibulators.

Although the brothers had shared a lifetime of joint music-making, they launched their formal duo only after both had relocated to Brooklyn. Performing in tight harmony over spare arrangements, their Brother Brothers project wove Appalachian, traditional folk, and bluegrass threads together with newly composed material. Following the independent release of their Tugboats EP in 2017, they joined the Compass Records roster and delivered their full-length debut, Some People I Know, the following year.

Two standalone singles, “Siren Song” and “Summer Rain,” surfaced in 2019 while the pair prepared its next album. Broadening their restrained, gentle sound, the duo released its second LP, Calla Lily, in 2021. On Cover to Cover the Brother Brothers interpreted songs by Tom T. Hall, Richard Thompson, Judee Sill, James Taylor, and Jackson Browne, offering a 2022 tribute to their formative influences.