During this final week of the last full month in a seemingly unending Milwaukee winter, it’s getting tough for people to think spring. As we do our damnedest to brave frigid temperatures and free our road salt-covered vehicles from snowbanks, folks living in our icy city surely appreciate anything that conjures even a semblance of summertime sensation. If you can’t manage an island getaway in the near future, listening to L’Resorts could be the next best thing.

The duo—consisting of Lady Cannon namesake Martha Cannon and Jaill founding member Vincent Kircher—announced its arrival late last year with its “tropical pop” holiday EP, Christmas Is A Time For Dreaming. Since then, L’Resorts have treated greater Milwaukee to their decidedly warm sounds at a few live outings and by putting out a Valentine’s Day single called “Spooky Love.” Sunday afternoon, the new project will provide musical pairing for island drink enjoyment at the inaugural Turner Hall Tiki Takedown.

Before this weekend’s appearance (and prior to next week’s Lady Cannon album release show), we asked Martha Cannon about the origin of L’Resorts, why she thinks the project can “put everyone in a good rum-drinking mood,” and what to expect from Lady Cannon’s forthcoming record.

Milwaukee Record: How did L’Resorts come about and what’s it been like playing with Vincent so far?

Martha Cannon: I emailed Vinnie out of the blue asking if he’d like to do one song with me. I didn’t have a reason or a plan. I’m pretty sure we’d never spoken to each other before other than hello. He didn’t respond. I must have waited for over a month and I was sure that he dismissed it. But then one day, I got a reply and we tried out a song I’d been working on. It’s funny, we listened to that song recently and it’s not very good. We laughed about it. He must have heard something with potential though because after the first song, he joked that we should start a band. Or maybe he was serious. It’s often hard for me to tell the difference with him.

Vinnie is easy to work with. Sometimes it takes me 50 takes to get something right, and he never makes me feel weird about it. And he has no shortage of creative energy. We’ve been recording roughly one song a week for over a year now. Knowing what you want cuts down on a lot of wasted time. He definitely knows what he wants.

MR: When we announced the Turner Hall Tiki Takedown, you got in touch with us almost instantly about playing. What do you think makes L’Resorts the ideal musical pairing for island drinks?

MC: We’ve got a bit of an island vibe because of the marimba, but I think we also have a throwback feel—think Nancy Sinatra—that I think will put everyone in a good rum-drinking mood.

MR: While you’ve been ramping that project up, you also recorded a new Lady Cannon album that’s coming out next month. How do you decide what songs go in which band, and how does your approach to each project differ?

MC: I don’t do any of the writing in L’Resorts, so it’s very easy to keep things separate. Vinnie writes the music and the lyrics. I weigh in occasionally on something with tempo or arrangement, but otherwise, it’s all him. With Lady Cannon, I’m responsible for making the wheels turn and it’s nice to get a break from that. It seems like my approach in L’Resorts might be social director. We do fun things like go to Six Flags and have a family meal on Sundays before we rehearse. It’s pretty common for the seven of us to hang out on weekends and go to shows, support the other projects the band members are in. Lady Cannon doesn’t work that way, it’s much less cult-y.

MR: What can we expect from the new Lady Cannon record?

MC: It’s all over the place, and I think that’s why I hesitated for so long to release it. It’s been finished for two years and I couldn’t figure out what the heck to do with it. Was it supposed to be two EPs? Or no album at all and only singles? I still don’t know the answer, but it felt like time to move on and stop overthinking it. I can say that I play with some of the most amazing talent in Milwaukee—Pat Reinholz, Barry Paul Clark, Andrew Trim, and Devin Drobka—so the more you listen to it, the more gems you’ll hear. There are layers. Other than that, it’s standard Lady Cannon: drinking, promiscuity, flawed protagonists, broken hearts, et cetera.

MR: The project is young, but what’s on the horizon for L’Resorts? Will you stick to just doing holiday-themed EPs and singles, or is a full-fledged album in the works?

MC: The project doesn’t feel young to us because we’ve been hiding out in the basement working on it for over a year. But no one knew, so I can see why we are categorized as young. We have two albums done and a third very close. The holiday releases are just for flex, but yeah, we have plans for a zombie Easter holiday release. It’s a good way to keep things light and fun.

L’Resorts will perform at the inaugural Turner Hall Tiki Takedown on Sunday, March 3. On Friday, March 8, Lady Cannon will headline an album release show at Cactus Club.