Musician’s Taste: More Than Rabbit Foot: Chatham Rabbits Balance Touring With Life on the Farm

By Stratton Lawrence

Sarah McCombie’s first performances in Charleston were weekly gigs with folk trio The South Carolina Broadcasters at D’Allesandro’s Pizza and Yo Burrito back in 2013. She’d drive down from Raleigh, crash for the night, and then race back up I-95 for class. It was a hectic existence for a then-19-year-old, but it established her gigging work ethic and led to meeting her husband, Austin McCombie, who was in the audience when the SC Broadcasters opened for Mandolin Orange (now called Watchhouse) in Carrboro, N.C.

That encounter spawned a marriage and a band, Chatham Rabbits, named after the central N.C. county where the couple, now in their early 30s, launched their lives together. Today, they live in nearby Guilford County, on the family farm where Sarah grew up gathering with her cousins. Chatham Rabbits released their fourth full-length studio album on Valentine’s Day, titled Be Real With Me. Austin plays guitar, Sarah plays banjo, and they both sing, harmonizing on each other’s songs across a collection that tells a story of growing together from both sides of a marriage. 

“I want my freedom/I want a baby/It’s all been coming to me lately,” Sarah sings on “Collateral Damage,” lamenting the thirty-something plight of balancing desires for a career and a family. Austin introspects on “Facing 29,” finding him fly fishing in a brook trout stream, reflecting on their growth during “the last year of our youth.” 

Although they work out their emotions as a couple, through literal harmony, Sarah says it’s not always an invitation to weigh in. “You would not believe what dudes will say at the merch table,” she exclaims. “When a man says that ‘Parenthood is beautiful,’ I ask if they’ve ever had a C-section or post-partum depression.” 

Sarah’s bless-your-heart, matter-of-fact bluntness is softened by openness and a welcoming spirit. During the Covid pandemic, they hosted shows on their farm, complete with a merch table that pairs t-shirts with local eggs and handwritten song lyrics. Before speaking to Southern Flavor on a recent 18-degree January morning, Sarah broke up ice in their animals’ water buckets while Austin loaded instruments for their gig that evening. They’re partners in life, music, and business, but also conscious of their own identities in a way that may not be obvious to onlookers. 

“We have this unified identity in the public eye, so people see us as one and the same,” says Austin, who sings about searching for identity on the album’s sixth track, “Did I Really Know Him?”

“We’re trying to ask questions that people in our parents’ generation may not have asked,” says Austin. “People can feel resentful as they get older, like they’ve lost themselves. We’re fighting really hard to never get to that point.” 

One way the couple chase their own passions is through food. Austin is an avid hunter who harvests whitetail deer and turkey on their property. Venison meatballs are typically on hand at rehearsals with their upright bass and mandolin players.

“If you come to the Chatham Rabbits’ house, you’re going to get bourbon and venison,” Sarah laughs. 

During the summer, a herd of Angus cows graze on their property, providing another homegrown protein source. And if you visit during the holidays (or on a birthday or any special occasion) you’ll also likely get a slice of lemon chess pie. Sarah uses the same crowd-pleasing recipe her grandmother adapted from a Greensboro insurance company’s employee clubhouse. When Sarah turned 15 during a family trip to Washington, D.C., her mother lugged a toaster oven into a hotel room to prepare it on the spot. Today, her mom tends to an indoor lemon tree in her N.C. house, guaranteeing an annual harvest. 

“My family makes this pie as authentic as possible,” jokes Sarah. Austin was introduced to the lemon chess pie on his first extended visit to Sarah’s family. “I ended up staying for ten days, and many pies were eaten during that time,” says Austin. “I had no clue that years later, I’d be restoring that farm and living there with Sarah.” 

Sarah equates recipes like her family’s lemon chess pie to a song, “in the sense that when you taste a specific food it can transport you to a moment or a person,” she explains. “Songs put a stamp on moments and become a soundtrack to life.” 

In Charleston, that memory stamp for Sarah is a French 75 cocktail and a plate of mussels at Rue de Jean. She’d discreetly indulge in that combo after SC Broadcasters gigs years ago. It may be on the menu when Chatham Rabbits returns to the Lowcountry on March 27 to headline the Charleston Pour House.