Bernie and the Wolf return home from Chicago for an East Village hoedown.

Take a small-town acoustic singer/songwriter, relocate her to a metropolis, plug in her new electric guitar, then shake and pour over awakened rock ‘n’ roll feminism. Garnish with a loyal badass drummer and you’re ready for a refreshing sip of Bernie and The Wolf.

Bernadette “Bernie” Conant and Erik “The Wolf” Lobo thrived on comradery within Monterey’s music scene. Lobo further credits a “Monterey mood” with influencing their sound.

“It’s tough to describe,” he says. “It’s an intangible attitude.” He says local artists like Lillie Lemon and the Beholder Band, both of whom open for Bernie and Wolf at their upcoming show at East Village, capture that vibe.

Conant and Lobo played stripped-down sets at venues throughout Monterey County for two years. A year and a half ago, they relocated to Chicago.

There they encountered a new, more brazen cosmopolitan atmosphere. Simultaneous to their relocation, Conant began experiencing pain in her left hand from carpal tunnel syndrome.

“You have to put a lot of force behind pressing strings on an acoustic guitar,” Lobo explains. “An electric guitar is easier to play.”

Swapping acoustic for electric improved Conant’s dexterity. “She was in a new world, with new abilities,” Lobo says. “She began writing differently.”

Conant gravitated toward female-fronted indie rock bands, like Land of Talk, Hop Along and Esme Patterson, for inspiration.

“She couldn’t completely shed her old skin,” says Lobo. “You hear a beautiful merger of a coffee house singer/songwriter in a rock context.”

Conant’s girlish but powerful and resonant voice caterwauls on the title track from the band’s new album, Catch Me.

The transition from acoustic to electric was apparently natural, as demonstrated by her precise execution.

Lobo’s meticulous percussion is an essential foundation for Conant’s diving-then-ascending guitar. But ultimately, Conant is still a storyteller.

“I’ve been waiting on an Indian summer/ and years go by,” she sings. “I’m thinking of the time I knew you/ back when I borrowed your sweater.”

BERNIE AND THE WOLF 7pm, Friday, Jan. 6. East Village Coffee Lounge, 498 Washington St., Monterey. No cover. 373-5601, www.EastVillageCoffeeLounge.com.