Louder Than The Music

Nashville's newest export is singer/songwriter duo City Harbor. This exciting twosome have just released their self-titled debut. Louder Than The Music caught up with Molly Reed and Robby Earle to delve into their music a little deeper.

For those who haven't heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got involved in making music?

(ROBBY)- Well, Molly and I both grew up making music. We also both grew up pretty steeped in the church. She moved to Nashville to attend Belmont, where she found a lot of success as a songwriter. She signed a publishing deal right out of college. I moved to town a few years later with a similar story. While Molly’s focus was writing, I did more of the singer/songwriter artist thing for a few years. Molly and I actually met at a mutual friends' show in Nashville in a moment that was fairly clandestine. We both felt this pull to explore writing together. We connected pretty quickly musically and both of us have a passion for writing honest, accessible songs about our faith. And the rest is history I suppose!

Tell us a little bit about your album and what the inspiration behind it was?

(MOLLY) - We both come from a background in songwriting, so we wanted to make sure that our record not only had great songs, but also came from a real place for each of us. During the writing process we didn't really have one theme in mind, but hindsight is 20/20. After finishing the record and listening from top to bottom we realized a common thread of peace and rest in the Lord through out each song. We like to think of this record as somewhat of a journal of the past two years, and it's clear that the Lord was teaching the both of us about letting it go and trusting Him.

Which is your favourite track on the album and why?

(ROBBY) - Oh, man. I feel like I could answer that differently on any given week. My favorite right now is probably a song called ‘I Will Rest’. It was a very late addition to the record, but it’s one that I’m so grateful for. This is one of those songs I absolutely love to sing. Mostly because it speaks to a struggle that I personally run into a lot. I think, as followers of Jesus, we tend to overcomplicate things. We set up all these systems and rules for how we have to do things in order to be the best Christians. We can get tangled in all our study plans and community groups and quiet times and even mission projects. We can make our Christian life an idol over Christ. Don’t hear me say following Jesus is easy. That’s not the case at all. The call of Christ is an all consuming one. But I think we spend so much time trying and worrying and trying harder and worrying more. In the end, I always come back to the fact that God wants us to just stop and listen and follow His voice. We know the only way to really live at all is through total trust in Christ. And I think so often that means just resting in Him and letting Him push us where He will.

Some of the lyrics touch on struggles and difficult experiences, is it hard sharing these personal stories through your music?

(MOLLY) - Honestly, it's a joy to be able to share pain and struggle in a real way through song. It's freeing in so many ways. I am a firm believer in honesty and being vulnerable. Its amazing how healing sharing wounds and struggles can be to both myself and others. It's my prayer that the truth would shine through each of these songs.

If you could work with any songwriter, who would it be and why?

(ROBBY) - That’s a great question. There are a couple names rolling around in my head right now. If I had to pick one, I would probably say Jon Foreman. That guy is just such a rock star. I’m young enough for Switchfoot to have been a huge part of my musical upbringing. I was in high school when Jon released his solo EP's and the first Fiction Family record, which were both amazing. I’ve just been so continually impressed with how totally honest he is as a writer. You look at him and you see this guy who is living out his calling in such a beautiful way. And there’s the danger of thinking he has it all figured out. But then, he writes these lines like, “Where is God in the genocide? Where are You in my broken heart?” And I realize he has the same lows, the same doubts that I do. Sometimes, it’s not all clear. In fact, sometimes none of it feels clear. But God is still there. He’s still constant in that. Jon communicates that in a way that inspires me over and over again. I would be honored to work with him some day.

Who are your musical influences?

(MOLLY) - For me I have admired Amy Grant for as long as I can remember. My very first concert was an Amy Grant/Michael W. Smith Christmas show and it changed my life! From then on I was set out on a mission to learn how to play guitar and write songs! She actually recorded two songs of mine on her latest album. It's unbelievable how BIG the Lord dreams. I'm so grateful to had such an incredible woman of God to look up to musically.

How would you define success in your career as singers?