Since meeting at the University of North Texas in 1990, guitarists and friends Darin Layne and David Pulkingham have gone on to become critically acclaimed musicians whose resumes could rival those of some of the most well known names in the business. Darin has produced and released eight albums of his own, including the Eastern-influenced Left of Sunday Afternoon, which Guitar Player Magazine called, “the perfect ‘Sunday morning’ disc,” and has worked with an notable list of artists, including Donovan, Moby and Paul Barker of Ministry. David, who has worked with the likes of Robert Plant, Bruce Springsteen and Tony Visconti, David Bowie’s producer, currently tours with Patty Griffin. Based in Austin, TX, both Darin and David have been gigging, touring, recording, producing and teaching professionally at home and abroad for more than a few seasons. In spite of their busy schedules, Darin and David have managed to continue playing duets on and off together for 25 years, inspired by their mutual passion for collaborating on guitar in the Brazilian Choro style. In 2007, under the name Crying Monkeys, the two friends and seven other ensemble members released the traditional Choro album, Little Pieces of the Sky. Unlike the duo’s new album, Poison Flower, Little Pieces of the Sky is not made up of original compositions, but of traditional pieces from the Choro repertoire. For Poison Flower, Darin commissioned local luthier Chris Forshage to make a custom, 7-string nylon guitar, which Darin knew he would need in order to create the Choro-inspired album he had in mind. Completely instrumental, Poison Flower’s 10 tracks are all live takes. Darin puts his 7-string to good use. David’s guitar playing is as impressive as Darin’s, and together, the two players strike a delightful balance of spontaneity and thoughtful choices. David composed one track; Darin composed the album’s other nine tracks. Remarkably, Darin and David arranged and recorded the 10 songs in just 10 days over the course of about a year. Poison Flower is the result of two virtuoso guitarists with similar musical sensibilities leveraging their longtime friendship to do what they do best—make great music. Let’s hope Darin Layne and David Pulkingham continue to play duets together for another 25 years.