The Milk Carton Kids

The Milk Carton Kids play the Musical Instrument Museum on Saturday, December 19, as part of their Lost Cause Lover Fool Holiday Tour. It's a duo from Eagle Rock, California, fronted by Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale, and the whole thing is built around their voices locking into the close-knit harmonies that have become their signature. They play with minimal acoustic instrumentation — a 1951 Gibson J45 and a 1954 Martin 0-15 — and lean on witty banter to carry shows whose lyrics wander through love, loss and the human condition.

They've been doing this for a while. In 2014, they earned a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album for The Ash & Clay, a record that carried a foreword by Joe Henry. The two of them handle everything on stage: the singing, the guitar playing, and the talking in between songs. The banter is a real part of the set, not just a way to tune up, and it's where you get a sense of the two of them as people rather than just a singing act.

The venue is as much a part of the night as the music. The Musical Instrument Museum houses a global collection of instruments, and the Music Theater is noted for its exceptional acoustics and tiered seating, which means you'll hear those harmonies clearly from wherever you're sitting. It's a good fit for a show that relies on two voices and two acoustic guitars.

The concert starts at 8 PM on Saturday, December 19, at the Musical Instrument Museum Music Theater in Phoenix.