Watch Mandolin Orange’s NPR Tiny Desk Concert

For a decade now, Mandolin Orange bandmates Emily Frantz and Andrew Marlin have sustained a quiet chemistry that has resulted in six albums and earned the duo comparisons to Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings. As beloved veterans of North Carolina’s contemporary roots music, it’s a surprise they’ve never performed an NPR Tiny Desk Concert before.

But today, you can watch the pair perform in NPR’s famously cramped quarters, as Marlin and Frantz make the case, all over again, for the gentle, thoughtful harmonizing that’s been their bread and butter for a decade. Gentle instrumentation throws Marlin’s confident vocals into warm relief as the duo sings several tracks from Tides of a Teardrop, their latest album, released in January.

Mandolin Orange kicks off its fall and winter tour dates with a September 21 performance at Koka Booth Amphitheatre (Mountain Man accompanies); the tour includes stops in LA, New York, D.C., and two nights at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. Watch the performance below, and take a look at the full list of tour dates here. 

[email protected]

Support independent local journalism. Join the INDY Press Club to help us keep fearless watchdog reporting and essential arts and culture coverage viable in the Triangle.