Indie folk duo Frances Luke Accord (“FLA”) has unveiled “Saint Mary,” the latest from the latest harmony-laden track from Safe In Sound, their gorgeous LP out on February 9th via Two-Dale Records/Tone Tree Music. The song was inspired by a cycling accident that nearly cost co-founder Nicholas Gunty his life, an experience that made him reflect on the fragility of being human:

It took time  

To recoup what was taken 

Self in remaking  

Rethink this life 

In my head oh 

In our only life cycle 

In the blink of an eye I was left 

The whole world was ending 

But also rebirth 

And also pretending 

Knowing what life is worth 

“Saint Mary” follows album tracks “Window” and “In My Life,” a hopeful ballad and vocal tour de force reminiscent of Simon & Garfunkel and Peter, Paul, & Mary which features FLA’s mentors and brethren, Darlingside. The band has recently released three other tracks from the album, “This Morning (ft. Liz Chidester),” and “Friend You’ve Been.”

When FLA’s Nicholas Gunty and Brian Powers put their songs and voices together, there is a delicate magic that commands the room to attention–NPR’s Mountain Stage has called them “the definition of lean-in music.” Their soft, contemplative vintage of indie-folk gestures toward a timelessness that honors the Simon & Garfunkel comparisons but pushes beyond into the world of Bon Iver, Jose Gonzalez, and progressive folk music. 

Both raised in South Bend, Indiana, Gunty and Powers met and began performing together during their time at the University of Notre Dame. Their first release, Kandote, was a bold intercultural collaboration with the Barefoot Truth Children’s Choir in Uganda, a not-for-profit effort that continues to support the choir to this day. 

Relocating to Chicago in 2013, the duo honed their songwriting craft while releasing two more self-produced EPs, laying the groundwork for their breakthrough debut full-length, Fluke, in 2016. This immersive, philosophically rich album set them off on their first national tour, which included support dates with Darlingside, Anaïs Mitchell, and The Ballroom Thieves.

A remote band since 2017, the duo’s DIY ethos has remained strong since Fluke. Still self-managing and producing, the duo has released two more EP’s, Silver & Gold (2019) and Sunnyside (2021)–the latter under their new label, Two-Dale Records–as well as a number of singles.