Lullabye Arkestra Happy as Husband-and-Wife Duo, Prep New Album

Toronto's Lullabye Arkestra report that life is good as a duo, despite a few logistical difficulties.

"So far it's been really great," singer-bassist Kat Taylor-Small tells Spinner on the line from the band's Chicago tour stop. "It does make the drives a little harder though. When there's two people you feel like you need to stay up for the driver, so there's a lot less sleeping in the van."

The hard rocking outfit, which also includes Do Make Say Think member Justin Small on drums -- conveniently, he's also Taylor-Small's husband -- transitioned to the bare-bones setup after learning an important lesson from their 2006 debut, 'Ampgrave.'

"'The record has strings and horns, the whole deal, so when we went about playing those songs live they definitely had a different feel," says the bassist. Rather than worry about recruiting musicians to bolster their live show for their next effort, the couple decided to simply strip down their aesthetic and record their raucous, spastic tracks as a duo.

According to Taylor-Small, the reaction to Lullabye Arkestra's new sound, as heard on the band's sophomore album, 'Threats/Worship,' has been enthusiastic, at least judging from the wild nights they experienced while touring across North America.

With the cross-country trek coming to a close with a string of dates in Ontario and Quebec over the next two weeks, the newlywed confesses that she's looking forward to being back in familiar territory. "After being on the road for a month and a half our s--t is super-tight, so we're excited to get back to home turf," she says.

The pair is also counting the days until they can climb back into the recording booth to finish off their new album. "Before we left for this tour we recorded five songs, so we're going to get back in the studio to really bunker down this summer so we can hopefully get the record out for a fall release," says Taylor-Small.

"This time we're focusing more on melody and having a bit more defined song structures," she continues. "There are some songs that are going to be rock 'n' roll and straightforward, and then there are some that are free form, more experimental songs -- that's the beauty of being a duo, we have so many options as far as what we can do, so we're just exploring every avenue we can."

Lullabye Arkestra Tour Dates:

4/15 ST. CATHERINES, ON LEVEL 3
4/16 TORONTO, ON THE GARRISON
4/17 LONDON, ON CALL THE OFFICE
4/28 PETERBOROUGH, ON RED DOG TAVERN
4/29 MONTREAL, QC CASA DEL POPOLO
4/30 OTTAWA, ON CAFÉ DEKCUF
5/01 KINGSTON, ON AKA