I’m With Her casts a quiet spell at the Filene Center at Wolf Trap

You’d be forgiven for forgetting there were only three people on stage.

On a humid July night at Wolf Trap's Filene Center, the co-headline show between I’m With Her and Iron & Wine (read that review here) felt like two sides of the same coin—each immersive in its own way.

Backed only by stringed instruments and each other’s voices, Sarah Jarosz, Sara Watkins, and Aoife O’Donovan delivered a set that felt almost elemental—earthy, luminous, and satisfyingly fluid. Their harmonies shimmered, refracted through shifting lead vocals and delicately woven arrangements that let each musician shine in her own space before folding seamlessly back into the trio.

Each musician brought their own set of tools to the stage. Jarosz rotated between banjo, mandolin, and guitar while Watkins switched between violin and ukulele. They passed instruments and lead vocals with ease, highlighting both individual strengths and the group’s deep musical chemistry. At one point, they joked, “We’ve been a band for 11 years. We’re 11 years old,” a nod to their long-standing collaboration and friendship with one another.

A standout moment came with “Sisters of the Night Watch,” where Sara Watkins took center stage, her voice rising almost to a yell, cutting through the shimmering chorus that opened the song. The track unfolded as a haunting ode to the intimacy of sisterhood across generations, with lyrics like, “Sisters of the night watch / Do you know me? / I feel my soul resonate with thee,” layering urgency over calm verses sung by Jarosz and O’Donovan. The dynamic tension of the performance made it one of the night’s most gripping highlights.

The trio also paid tribute to their musical roots with the title track from their latest album, Wild and Clear and Blue. As they shared onstage, the song contains echoes of folk greats Nanci Griffith and John Prine—artists they admire and mourned in recent years.

After I’m With Her’s set, Iron & Wine took the stage, shifting the evening’s mood with Sam Beam’s signature whisper-quiet voice and delicate fingerpicking.

But the show wasn’t over for I’m With Her. They returned for an extensive six-song encore alongside Iron & Wine, including a performance of “Robin’s Egg”—their collaborative single and namesake of the tour. The combined forces of the two groups melded seamlessly on stage, offering a fitting close to an evening defined by shared artistry.

As dusk settled, fireflies flickered at the lawn’s edge—an unplanned encore from nature itself. I’m With Her’s harmonies didn’t demand attention; they earned it, filling the open air with a sound as rich as a well-worn story.

Setlist

• Strawberry Moonrise

• Find My Way to You

• Ancient Light

• Standing on the Fault Line

• See You Around

• Game to Lose

• Ain’t That Fine

• Crossing Muddy Waters (John Hiatt cover)

• Sisters of the Night Watch

• Carey (Joni Mitchell cover)

• Only Daughter

• Mother Eagle (Sing Me Alive)

• Wild and Clear and Blue

• Year After Year