The word "stunning" is often used to describe the sounds of The Krickets, and it doesn't take long to understand why so many people feel that way. Even if their songs weren't captivating on their own, the beautiful blend of their voices would instantly make you want to lean in and listen.

The three talented women who make up the Americana ensemble are singer-songwriters Emily Stuckey Sellers, Lauren Spring, and Rachel Grubb, all of whom trade off singing lead and backup. All are accomplished musicians on their own, but their close harmonies and tight collaborations as writing partners take their music to another level. 

"Speaking for myself, I'd say that when we're together there's definitely a magic feeling," says multi-instrumentalist Lauren Spring, whose instruments include acoustic and electric guitars, violin, and guitjo, which is a guitar-banjo hybrid. Her bandmate Emily, who plays acoustic and electric guitars and guitjo, agrees: "It's one of the most wonderful feelings to sing and create together, and it definitely touches on something in your heart when you're in three-part harmony together."

Those powerful feelings of connectedness are why they work so hard to keep the group together, even though, in terms of distance, they're usually quite far apart. While Emily lives in the Fairhope area, the other two Krickets live in Florida. Lauren resides more than 200 miles away in Port St. Joe, while the third member of the group, bassist Rachel, lives another 200 miles away in Lake City, which is about 60 miles this side of Jacksonville. 

They'll get together three times this month for shows in our area. The Krickets are on the bill along with Grits and Greens and Grayson Capps for the annual Earth Day Celebration in Fairhope on Saturday, April 18. The following weekend, they are part of a private event at The Frog Pond at Blue Moon Farm and then have a public performance at Fairhope Brewing Company on Sun., April 26. 

Celebrating the release of their third album, "If You Only Knew," The Krickets formed a decade ago after a breast cancer benefit event in Port St. Joe honoring cancer victim Kristina "Cricket" Russell. After some early personnel changes, Rachel joined about six years ago, which turned out to be just as the COVID pandemic was happening.

"We were big fans of Rachel. We loved her music," says Lauren. "We'd seen her at festivals before, and when you have someone talented like that, and you already know you love their music and already know what their vibe is, it's not hard to try to imagine if they'd be a fun fit."

So they asked her to join, and she readily did once she got over her surprise. 

"I couldn't believe it at first," Rachel says. "It blew my mind because I did respect their work so much. I'd seen them, of course, at festivals, just like they'd seen me."

She was a guitarist who hadn't played bass very much, but she quickly took it on, first with a smaller ukulele bass and an electric Hofner bass similar to the one Paul McCartney used in the Beatles.

"She did it without blinking an eye," says Lauren. "The practice she's put into that craft has just been crazy. We're so proud of her."

Besides juggling band performances with solo and duo gigs, the women of The Krickets have also navigated their musical lives along with family commitments over the years.

"My kids are 16 and 17, and they'll graduate soon," Lauren says. "Rachel's son graduated a couple of years ago, and Emily's are a little bit younger, so we've got all phases of it. We've learned to prioritize, and it's family first, for sure."

In terms of The Krickets, the priority right now is calling attention to their remarkable new album, which they recorded at Sun Drop Sound in Muscle Shoals. While it shares the earthy nature of their earlier releases, "Spanish Moss Sirens" and "Redbird" (and their stand-alone singles "These Games" and "Pay No Mind"), the new release sounds cohesive, contemporary, and confident. With lush but organic production and inventive instrumentation, they branch away from their folkier roots into rock, gospel, and soulful country-pop.

They are very proud of the new album and want as many people to hear it as possible, so you can expect to hear a lot of it at their shows in Fairhope. While they are known as a trio, these days the group has expanded to include percussionist Caroline Watts (who is also their manager) as well as accomplished musician Molly Thomas.

"Molly loved our albums (as we do hers), and reached out to see if we could use her talents," says Emily. "We said absolutely and were very honored! She plays piano/organ, cello, and viola. Our albums have all of these instruments on them, and she helps recreate those records beautifully. It has been nothing but a dream-come-true playing with her."

After this run of shows, their schedule takes them to Hawthorne, Fla., in early May and brings them back to our area for the Essential Rhythms Musical Festival at Weeks Bay Plantation on Sat., May 16. While they are always excited to perform as one, it requires a lot of effort for them to make it happen. 

"It's the hardest part," Lauren says. "In order to be together, you're gonna drive for three hours, and it's exhausting to drive that far to get to a gig. We've also learned that if it's been more than two or three weeks since we've seen each other, we kind of need a rehearsal for that show just to make sure it's tight and we're clear on everything and every kink is worked out."

There usually are some offstage matters to deal with, too, such as business decisions, so their time together isn't all play. But that's just another reason that, for The Krickets and their fans, their time on stage together is truly special.