The three women in I’m With Her were all acoustic-music prodigies of a sort when they were children.
Sara Watkins, a fiddler, uke player and vocalist, was one-third of the progressive bluegrass trio Nickel Creek. She released her first solo record in 2009. Singer, banjo player, guitarist and mandolinist Sarah Jarosz has had a successful solo career, with her 2016 record “Undercurrent” having won two Grammys. And Aoife O’Donovan was a member of the Boston-based Crooked Still. They each knew their way around an instrumental break that might only last a couple bars and vocal harmonies that are tight and close.
The music of I’m With Her operates on those same principles of precision blending. The songs can seem sparse and skeletal like old folk music, but a close listen reveals subtle intricacies. (About that name: they had it before Hillary Clinton made it her campaign slogan.)
The trio knows how to pick a devastating cover too. They’ve done arresting versions of tunes by Adele and Nina Simone. I’m With Her released their mesmerizing debut record, “See You Around,” earlier this year. Fans of Gillian Welch, Feist, Simon & Garfunkel, the Milk Carton Kids and even the Dixie Chicks will find a lot to enjoy in the music of this talented trio whose playing is predicated on camaraderie.
See I’m With Her at College Street Music Hall, 238 College St., New Haven, on Nov. 14 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $35 to $40. collegestreetmusichall.com