Straight from Berwyn, IL comes this group full of old school country rock swagger. The dueling vocals from Sara Jean Stevens and Rachel Swain weave together in raw harmonies that reflect the truth in a full life lived. We caught up with the two musicians at the heart of Working Mother a few weeks after the release of their debut EP Lover Lover; a collection of their catchy tunes that will stick around long after the last notes fade.

SJS: Sara Jean Stevens
RS: Rachel Swain

Your debut EP Lover Lover came out a few weeks back, with an old school country rock feel and plenty of emotional punch. Where do you draw your inspiration from?

RS: Inspiration for these songs comes from all over the place, but I think especially from lived experiences and people in our lives.
SJS: I agree with Rachel. I think most of our songs draw from things we've personally done, felt, seen, and lived. Life is pretty good about giving you a story, if you're open to it.

The Chicago country / honky tonk scene is deep and varied. Do you see Working Mother fitting into any of the sub-genres that have formed within the broad spectrum of the scene?

SJS: I really don't, and not in a bad way. Alt-country, Americana... those are some pretty broad terms. We don't feel the need to be labeled as any one specific kind of music, and are happy to just write songs as they come rather than try and force them into a certain style.

A project of this depth isn't born out of thin air, what led to the formation of Working Mother?

SJS: This project has been in the back of my mind for at least a decade, and some of these songs are 15 years old now. I've hounded Ryan Anderson to be my lead guitar player for 10 years!
I was asked to be a featured act for the Fly Honey Show 9, and roped Rachel in to perform with me. Something magical happens when she and I sing together... like sister voices. I needed a bass player and Rach suggested Melissa Kempfer. We rounded out the band with Chuck Harling on drums, and of course Ryan on lead guitar. 
I think the depth you hear comes from the long musical history we each have with one another. Chuck and Melissa have played together for over 20 years. Rachel and I are at 6. Chuck and Rachel have played in another band together for over 10 years, and Melissa was their first bassist. Ryan and I go back a decade as well. There's a familiarity, trust and comfort there that I think comes through when we play.

Once we can have shows again, what's your dream bill / venue to play? 

SJS: Three of us in the band live in Berwyn, and we all definitely love Fitzgerald's. My friend Will Duncan just bought the place in March and I'm so excited to see what he and Donnie Biggins will come up with. We were lucky enough to record a second EP before lockdown went into effect, and it would be amazing to have a party to celebrate both EPs at Fitz when this all blows over. It would be pretty rad to play with Jaime Wyatt and Sarah Shook as well. I love some strong female vocals!
A big thank you to John Abbey and Mike Hagler over at Kingsize Sound Labs! They whipped this EP into shape for us, and we're so happy to have worked with them.