Welcome to Hem – a quartet of New York musicians so dedicated to making their art real, they avoided the samples/synths route for their debut album, Rabbit Songs, and sold off personal possessions in order to get an 18-piece orchestra.

In 1999, songwriter Dan Messe and producer Gary Maurer began a project that they hoped would interweave their interest in traditional American music with a more contemporary aesthetic. Mutual friend Steve Curtis (guitar and mandolin) soon joined in the mix and Hem was born, but not complete. They still needed a voice.

After what appeared to be a failed attempt at recruiting a singer through an ad placed in the Village Voice, in walks, or rather phones, Sally Ellyson. Masse admits he asked her for a demo in order to get her off the phone. What he got was a homemade tape of her singing versions of lullabies – and found his singer.

Although the band proclaims it’s an “old school album, recorded the old school way,” Rabbit Songs has nevertheless attracted some very modern attention. The album, which was released domestically June 11 (Europeans were treated to the disc last year), shot up Amazon’s top seller list, despite little media attention.

Hem join Beth Orton for her U.S. tour, which runs July 28 through August 22. Dates in the U.K. and Ireland follow in the fall.