Olivia Fox is the Kansas City-based folk-pop trio of Aubrey Callahan, Lauren Flynn and Tiffany Smith. Formed in 2016, it's one of the most fully realized musical acts in Kansas City. The polished group is radio-ready and eminently marketable.
That's clear on “Play the Game,” the lead track of the group’s self-titled 2017 EP. As synthetic beats contrast with traditional folk harmonies, the hushed song becomes a wondrous combination of tension and tranquility — as enticing as a romantic whisper.
The trio performs on Sunday at the Kansas City Folk Festival, the public showcase associated with this year’s Folk Alliance Conference, where the country star Mary Chapin Carpenter and the conjunto master Flaco Jiménez are the biggest names to appear on four stages. (Olivia Fox is slated to play four private showcases at the conference prior to Sunday’s show.)
Olivia Fox, 3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 18 at the Kansas City Folk Festival at Westin Crown Center, 1 E Pershing Rd., Kansas City, Mo., 64108. The trio is also scheduled to perform on Tuesday, Feb. 20 as the opening act for the Maine-based folk trio the Ghost of Paul Revere at Knuckleheads, 2715 Rochester Ave., Kansas City, Mo., 64120; 816 483-1456.
KCUR contributor Bill Brownlee blogs about Kansas City's jazz scene at Plastic Sax.
