Run River North will be the first to tell you: it has largely been an uphill climb for the indie rock sextet from Los Angeles, a hero’s journey full of odds-defying opportunities seized amidst rocky naysayers and the snagging brambles of band life. And now, with their second full-length album Drinking From A Salt Pond, Run River North are poised to push forward and create their own wake as a major voice in today’s music landscape.

Since the band’s beginnings just over four years ago, their rise has been steadily spectacular, marked by appearances on national television, sold-out shows at historic venues, tours with rock and roll royalty and heaps of praise from fans and critics alike. As they blossomed, they embraced their initially folk-driven sound, which found its harmonic home alongside rootsy, foot stomping, sing-along-leading peers like Mumford & Sons, The Head and the Heart, and Of Monsters and Men. Powered by the acoustic-guitar-and-vocals songwriting of frontman Alex Hwang, their 2014 self-titled debut record, produced by Phil Ek (Fleet Foxes, Modest Mouse, Band of Horses), was released with their lineup rounded out by the strings duo of Daniel Chae and Jennifer Rim, Joe Chun on bass, Sally Kang on keys, and John Chong on drums.

As time and tours passed, the six lives spent in close-quarters began to grind the gears a little differently; their whole dynamic began to change. “When we became a band, we mostly played Alex’s songs in band form,” says Chae. “Since then we’ve all put our musical input into it, so the music has changed a lot.”

“We were tired of me on acoustic guitar and everybody singing harmonies,” says Hwang. “We were hitting a ceiling, and it wasn’t fun. We had always agreed this band was six-ways, for better or worse. So at the end of last year, after being in the van constantly, we said, ‘no more touring, let’s write new songs.’”

Embracing their natural growth and learning to ride the waves of their personal and musical evolutions with open hearts and nimble hands, Run River North have created a sophomore album that will propel them to the forefront of today’s landscape. Although at times the rushing water of their rise will pool into depths tough to swallow, they have learned to lean on each other and to trust themselves along the way in order to make something lasting and truly beautiful.

“From the start, we always said we wanted to play on the biggest stages possible,” says Hwang. “That’s still the same. But it isn’t some self-indulgent dream of becoming rock stars; we still want to support our families with this, we still have the parents that sacrificed for us and we want to honor them. For us as a band, at times it’s felt like we’ve been drinking from a salt pond—and yet, we still created something pretty fresh that we like and are proud of.”