There’s something going on with fragrant harbour folk. It might be kind of surprising, given our city’s general reputation as the King Kong of urban landscapes, but in the last 18 months some of the most exciting music coming out of the city has been stripped back, serene, acoustic and, well, folky. We’ve seen the likes of Noughts and Exes snag an overseas deal; Jing Wong receiving attention for joining the People Mountain People Sea stable; and young outfit Sun Eskimos riding high in the radio charts. Now, this fortnight, we’ll see yet another of our promising fragrant harbour folksters release their debut album.

Throughout 2011, 9 Maps have become one of the city’s most talked about bands, captivating many an audience with their slow-burning brand of acoustic folk, full of fluid, interweaving vocals, intoxicating harmonies and openly emotive atmospheres. They’ve scored high profile support gigs with Elbow and Lenka while securing management from one of Hong Kong’s most influential indie music personalities, and they’ve also contributed to a Southeast Asian Indie Compilation. To top off the year, 9 Maps have a trio of festival appearances lined up, culminating in Clockenflap at West Kowloon. “It’s crazy,” says Ciosa Houlihan who, along with fellow singer-songwriter Sherin Siew and drummer Gabe Andre, make up the trio. “These opportunities kind of came out of nowhere. And it just gets better and better.”

This fortnight, the 9 Maps adventure should take another giant leap with the release of High Incline, the group’s eight-song debut. Live, 9 Maps are pared back to the bone with a couple of acoustic guitars, an occasional piano touch, and some light rhythmic pattering. But on High Incline, they’ve taken a fuller approach, fattening up their textures with strings, tinkling tuned percussion and even more entwining and weaving vocals. “I really like delicate music that has lots of layers because every time you listen to it you might focus in on a different aspect of the song,” says Siew.

Named after the album’s opening track, High Incline could even be considered a concept album, with loss, existentialism, and the general feeling of a bitter-sweet existence permeating much of the lyrical and musical space. “I feel like High Incline is a synonym for harder times,” says Siew. “It came [about] because I read Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus, where he’s been cursed by the gods to roll the same rock up and down a hill, and every time he gets to the top, it rolls down again. And he uses this as a metaphor for human existence.”

In some ways, the album also tells the 9 Maps story – of schoolmates Siew and Houlihan brought together by the death of a close friend, writing songs in dedication and slowly morphing into a genuine band. And as they confess, the completion of the record has been an emotional process. “Ciosa texted me saying she was on the bus and crying,” says Siew. Adds Houlihan: “I think it’s emotional all the time. There’s always something that sets you off, particularly when you’re doing something like music that’s really connected to you.”

To help launch the album, 9 Maps are calling on their connections, pulling in Sun Eskimos and Joshua Wong (frontman of Noughts and Exes) for a proper fragrant harbour folk love-in – not a bad opportunity to check out one of the city’s most promising indie movements.

Mark Tjhung

9 Maps play a Secret Location Saturday November 26