There’s an elusive chemistry between some singers. George and Tammy had it, and so did Olivia and John. Those kids from Nickel Creek had it, and the hottest example of it in Nashville at the moment are a duo known as Pretty Gritty.

Pretty Gritty is the serendipitous joining of the talents of Blaine Heinonen and Sarah Wolff, both born and raised in Montgomery County, Maryland. Although they originate from different rock bands, fate brought them together at local “open-mic” nights, where it became evident that they shared an interest in writing and performing songs that mix country, rock, blues and soul. It is said that she brings the “pretty” while he brings the “gritty,” forming an engaging alt-country duo with seducing harmonies and addicting acoustics.

Opening the self-titled “Pretty Gritty” surprised me with a real old-timey number with a nod to the Gatlin Bros holding the bottom down. “Cliche” is a fun little tune that lets Sarah Wolff set a pace for the record and a mood with a question to be answered.

“This Heart of Mine” has a decidedly Nashville sound to it, with a simple dobro line leading with Blaine Heinonen’s slightly raspy vocal singing “don’t go breaking my heart,” it’s a set up for a top alt-country hit.

Stomp on into “Scorned” with Sarah taking lead again, with another radio ready swamper and a common Southern theme – “stay out of my way.” Open tuned blues guitar and fiddle with acoustic percussion are a perfect bed for Sarah’s voice.

Get ready for a weekend on the farm with “Country!” Nobody parties like country folk and Pretty Gritty obviously have some experience in the area.

The duo wrap up the EP with a smokey “Hellhound Blues.” For some reason, I keep thinking of Tom Waits while this one spins – even in the pretty little Debbie Harry bridge. I started off talking about “elusive” qualities, and this one is a perfect example of that. There’s not one thing that I can put my finger on, but rather, there are a whole stack of little things that make it an example of exemplary song-writing, arrangement, performance and production. Yeah pretty much the whole record works like that…

I’ll be adding this one to my regular playlist.