About That Song: LaPlant Road
About That Song #96
In our special series, singer-songwriter Sarah Morris interviews artists about the songs that shaped them.
Hi! I’m Sarah Morris. I’m wildly in love with songs and the people who write them. There have been a few songs in my life that have been total gamechangers—songs that made me want to be a songwriter and songs I’ve written that made me feel like I am a songwriter. About That Song is a space where I can learn more about those pivotal songs in other writers’ lives.
In the 96th edition of this series, I spoke with LaPlant Road, an amazing Minnesota acoustic duo, about formative songs in their musical journey.
LaPlant Road. Photo courtesy of the artists.
Sarah: Hello Liz Ashworth! Hello Emily LaPlant! Hello…LaPlant Road!
Officially formed in 2020, you share a deep musical history beginning on the actual LaPlant Road. A few summers back, I met you at the most delightful summer festival—held at someone’s cabin, because sometimes you just throw a music festival. More recently, we met at a coffee shop to discuss an exciting project you’re embarking on this year. As you begin this new adventure, I’d love to ask about the songs that have brought you both to where LaPlant Road is today! (Metaphorically, of course—no need to provide an exact street address, ha!) Do you remember the song you heard that made you want to be a songwriter? Tell us about that song.
Emily: It’s funny; when I think of “songwriter,” I think of “writer of words,” and I have never felt especially gifted in that area of writing songs. In creating melody and telling a story without words, yes, but not with words. Alas! I remember blasting my headphones at full volume in middle school to the song “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin and feeling the adrenaline rush surge through me, both with the fantastical images and the slow build of dynamics. Then in high school, I discovered Josh Garrels and was FLOORED by his album Love and War and the Sea in Between. He is such a gifted lyricist. I found myself longing to tell a tale beautiful and relatable, yet specific.
Liz: What first drew me to musical composition was playing and listening to classical music growing up and feeling how much emotion it could express without using any words at all. The melodies and harmonies speak for themselves, and that ability to communicate something so deeply always fascinated me. Eventually, I moved on from just composing instrumentally and began writing songs with lyrics, but my love for shaping emotional, meaningful melodies has never changed. All that to say, there wasn’t one particular song I heard that inspired my journey.
Sarah: I absolutely hear this reverence for the power of instrumental music in LaPlant Road’s compositions. Once you began writing, did you feel like a writer immediately? It took me a few years of writing before I believed it—was there a song that gave you that “a-HA! I AM a songwriter!” moment? Tell us about that song.
Emily: Ha, I still don’t feel like a songwriter, really. However, there was a moment this year that solidified the idea that there might be something to what I write. A few years back, I wrote a song called “Since You’ve been Gone” about losing my dad and the immense grief it held (and holds) for me. This past November, we had the privilege of playing a set at the Cedar Cultural Center, and we put that song in our set. I had multiple people come up after and share that the song deeply touched them. Because I write with sparse lyrics (often), I had never thought the song to be especially profound, but that was a moment where I thought, “wow, people relate to my songs and feel drawn in.” It felt really good and surprising.
Liz: It has been a gradual process for me to grow and believe that I am a songwriter. The more I hear people’s feedback on my songs, especially when someone wants to cover or requests a specific song of mine when I’m doing a show, that is a boost of confidence that helps me work through some of my insecurities. One of the songs I wrote and recorded in 2016 (titled “Sunshine”) is the song that probably started the journey for me to feel more like a songwriter. Partnering with Emily in LaPlant Road to write songs together has been especially inspiring, and I’m grateful for the collaboration and connection we have with each other that allows us to create beautiful music together.
LaPlant Road. Photo credit: PBS Backroads.
Sarah: I’m fascinated by how common it is that people I know to be songwriters hesitate to call themselves that exact thing. It sounds like your audience has played a pivotal role here. In letting you know that of course, your beautiful playing is meaningful, and also, that the specific things you are saying with that playing are impactful.
I’m curious, was there a song or a musical moment that you can look back on where LaPlant Road was formed? When you knew it was time to name it, to claim it, to take it around to shows and festivals? If so, tell us about that song!
LaPlant Road: For both of us, it was when we wrote and started playing “Common Truth,” which would have been the winter of 2020-2021. Being able to break free and shred on our instruments, build tension and dynamics together, and sing about something that made us angry and hopeful felt like a really good representation of our musical and childhood connection and friendship. Once we had that song, we knew we had something special to share with the world, and that was really energizing. Hearing people clap and holler when the dynamics got louder or when we played our instrumental improv just made us want to do it more and more.
Sarah: Ah! It sounds like the audience again showed up to say a version of “Hi! This! What you are offering! More, please!” I love that. You’re kickstarting your new year by heading into the studio—how exciting! I’m certain all of these fans have been hoping for a way to listen at home, and soon they will. You have a few live performance videos out there, including the gorgeous “Common Truth” you mentioned above. In this song, you make the case that “it’s better with the unity.” Ah…yes. Can you tell us about that song?
LaPlant Road: We wrote “Common Truth” somewhere in the winter of 2020-2021 (I think) in response to the civil discourse that was anything but civil. We found ourselves frustrated with people in and out of the Church who just could not seem to see that they were talking about the same things and had the same things in common: we all need to feel safe, loved, and seen. Disconnection to the humanity of any individual or group of people is dangerous and made us feel outraged and sad. We were sitting there talking about it, from all angles, and Emily started playing an angsty lick (which you hear in the tune), and as we kept playing it together, the groove organically evolved into a 7/4 time signature. Emily wrote the first verse, Liz wrote the second, and the third came together the more we sang the song.
Sarah: Yeah. That’s a pretty powerful way for a song to come together. Also, I’m a little tickled that a song with “Common” in the title is in 7/4 time. The angsty lick, the big heart in those lyrics—I’m very glad to know this song exists.
“You didn’t hear what he said” and then “You didn’t see what he did”—your song “Crazy” is lyrically spare, and rich in riff-tastic detail. It features some of the most evocative “oohs” I’ve ever heard. Can you tell us about that song? Also, perhaps…about that RIFF?
Emily: LaPlant Road is for sure a band of riffs and less-spoken-than-felt lyrics. I asked Liz to write a page of feelings about a specific situation that was happening that was making her feel angry and me feel sad for her. Since we both have had times in our life that made us feel crazy through means of being gaslit, it felt natural to put a melody to it. It started with a riff that I was playing while she was talking about one of the situations that had arisen, and then, after she wrote down some words, we started writing the tune together. It was cathartic, to say the least. Writing, for me, feels more like a meditation on a theme than necessarily spelling out every detail of what happened or what I’m trying to say (this could be the gospel choir influence in me).
Sarah: Angsty riffs and licks—the idea of it makes me wish I had the facility to play such things on an instrument. To support the making of this new album, you have a Kickstarter that is starting...today! (if you’re reading on publishing day, dear reader! If you’re reading on another day, it’s live for the next few weeks—go find out more.) I hear that if someone out there would like a custom riff/lick (angsty or otherwise), you are offering that as one of your rewards. Fantastic!
In addition to your recording, what does 2026 hold for LaPlant Road?
LaPlant Road: We are playing all over this year, and we’re excited about it! We’re planning a CD release “mini tour” around Minnesota sometime later this year that will be announced both on our social media and website. We’ll be at the Rochester Thaw in March and the Aster Cafe in April. We’ll also be at the Twin Town festival that month. We’ll be playing in Grand Rapids and Lutsen this summer. We’re hoping to make more connections, build more community, and get a gauge on the interest level that people have in our music this year, especially as we record and release an album. It feels like the hype is growing, and we want to jump on board!
Sarah: I’m on board! Emily, Liz—thank you so much for stopping by About That Song! I’m wishing you the best of luck with the Kickstarter, the recording process, and the year ahead!
Emily and Liz: Thank you for having us, Sarah! We appreciate you and all that you do so very much.
Listen to “Common Truth”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Morris. Photo credit: Tom Smouse.
Sarah Morris is a superfan of songs and the people who write them, and a believer that certain songs can change your life. A singer-songwriter / mama / bread maker / coffee drinker who recently released her fifth album of original material, she’s been known to joyfully sing with people in her Big Green Bathroom.
