“How to Hold” is 6 piece folk pop group Anna/Kate Band's first LP. What really makes this band interesting is the use of duets between the two lead singers, Anna Gothard and Kate Foster, accompanied by your typical folk sound. “Typical folk sound” being your slow paced, sweet songs with a stringed instrument or more rollicking, upbeat tune.

RIYL: Regina Spektor, Heathers, Ingrid Michaelson, Vienna Teng, Mother Falcon
Recommended: 3, 5, 9
FCC Clean

1. I Run With You (5:48) – Vocal with gentle piano builds into an intense orchestral heavy ballad. Last two minutes feel like a dramatic march with the use of drums and vocals.
2. Interlude To Broken Times (1:59) – Spoken track with minor instrumental backing.
3. Place In The Pines (4:53) – Starts with a soft banjo. Picks up with a banjo/drum lead accompanied w/ strings & vocals. End feels slow then hits you w/ a repetitive outro. **
4. Head On Vacation (3:49) – Sounds like a slow, striped down acoustic cover. Twangy.
5. Let's Run Away (4:56) – Typical ukulele start into a warm, sweet upbeat with bright vocals and a fantastic instrumental bit around the 3:30 mark. Fav song of the album. ***
6. Even Over Odd (3:53) – Mid-slow ukulele with a lot of “la la la's” and “da da da's”. It's cute. Easy to imagine this one in an indie romance movie montage scene.
7. Slow Down With Me (4:27) – Feels like a slow dance kinda song. Vocal focus. Gentle and sweet with a couple waves of instrumental.
8. Prelude To A Shipwreck (2:04) – Stripped down to vocals & evokes a sort of emptiness with a direct lead into Track 9. Some barely there float-y instrumental ambiance.
9. Shipwrecked (In My Motel Room) (4:48) – Starts with slow vocals and piano. Picks up with the addition of horns that give it a 40s/50s slow crooner feel. 2/3rds of the way in horns transition into a very slow pre-50's sound (think Over the Garden Wall). ***