Folk duet impassions West Coast performances

For a band who’s never played with Over The Rhine before, The Milk Carton Kids already have a history with the Ohio-based husband-and-wife duo.

Two guitars, two voices · The Milk Carton Kids, native Angelenos, have been stunning new listeners with their simplistic folk sound and style. The band will be playing a show with Over The Rhine on Nov. 13. - Photo courtesy of Crash Avenue

“We were on our way to a show and listening to Over The Rhine in the car,” said Joey Ryan, one half of 2011’s folk sensation The Milk Carton Kids. “We became fans very quickly — after that we decided it would be really cool to do a show with them.”

Kenneth Pattengale, the second face of The Milk Carton Kids, emailed Over The Rhine guitarist, pianist and bassist Linford Detweiler to tell him how much he admired his work, and the two began writing to each other.

Five months later, Ryan and Pattengale are getting ready to open for Over The Rhine at El Rey Theatre, marking the beginning of a weeklong west coast tour.

“This is our first opportunity to play in Los Angeles for an audience this big,” Ryan said. “We know they’ll be a great audience. It’ll be a real honor to open the show.”

The El Rey show also represents fulfillment of a more personal kind — Pattengale and Ryan are native Angelenos; Ryan attended UC Berkeley, and Pattengale, a USC alumnus, graduated with a degree in history and a minor certificate in critical studies in 2006.

“Every time we play in [Los Angeles] it feels like a homecoming show,” Pattengale said. “The crowds here have been very kind to us.”

It’s a modest statement for a band that has already sold out Santa Monica’s famed McCabe’s twice this year. Yet, the ability of Pattengale and Ryan to connect with their fans has remained steady as they continue their rapid ascent into fame.

The two also manage to make folk music appealing to those who normally reject the genre, and do so while giving away their music for free — saying it’s their live shows, not their CD sales, that mean the most.

“The records are an extremely great point of pride for us, but there’s something more, something more pure and different you get from a live performance every time,” Ryan said.

Remarkably, The Milk Carton Kids’ casual approach to album revenues hasn’t colored the business side of their live performances. They are, sincerely, not in it for the money.

“Pay for the show,” Pattengale said. “Come in, say hello to us, enjoy the night and then download the music for free. There’s something extra special about that.”

It’s The Milk Carton Kids’ passion for performing that has made their concerts so beloved in Los Angeles. The pair knows people are seeing them at their best.

“We have always hung our hats on the strength of our live shows,” Pattengale said. “Our first release was a live album, and we don’t put anything on the albums outside of what people see live anyway.”

For as much attention as Pattengale and Ryan have garnered in recent months, The Milk Carton Kids are a relatively recent creation. The two have known each other nearly two years, but it wasn’t until February that they began writing and playing as the folk duo we know today.

“The albums we were working on before we met each other were full of different instruments and sounds and effects,” Ryan said. “Then we met and started doing simpler things, just two guitars and two voices. Eventually we just decided we needed a name for it all.”

‘Two Guitars and Two Voices’ has become the duo’s signature of sorts, referring to their bare, stripped-down style of writing and recording. The band’s albums Retrospect, released in March, and Prologue, released in July, convey an unassuming openness between artist and listener. In Prologue tracks such as “Michigan” and “There By Your Side,” their voices, at once husky over two guitars, make you understand their widespread appeal.

The successful duo isn’t reluctant about staying together and shows no signs of separation. The Milk Carton Kids will at least stay together for a little bit.

“One more month,” said Ryan immediately.

Pattengale gravely added, “At least.”

They held for a moment, then yielded to fits of laughter before soberly outlining plans for festival performances, film score writing and even the possibility of a third album drop in the coming year.

“We’ve both indefinitely shelved our solo careers,” Ryan said. “Neither of us has plans to stop. There are other things we want to do, film scoring, all that, but for now it’s this. We work really well together.”

The Milk Carton Kids will open for Over The Rhine at El Rey Theatre on Nov. 13 at 8 p.m.