Smoosh

Smoosh are two sisters from Seattle, Chloe and Asya. Chloe plays drums and Asya plays keyboard and sings. Free to Stay is their second record. Jason McGerr from Death Cab for Cutie is their drum teacher and a bit of a mentor.

McGerr met Smoosh in the year 2000 while working for a music store selling drums three days a week. In the case of Smoosh, their father had stopped in to have his violin restrung. When the family heard the drums rumbling upstairs they headed up to check it out.

"I found the girls and the rest of their family huddled around a small red drum kit where Chloe was declaring her infatuation with the instrument, followed by the common parental response, "You'll have to practice and get lessons if you really want a drum set" said McGerr. "After greeting them and answering all their questions, I leveraged the deal using my second job as a teacher Seattle Drum School to get them started. If they agreed to buy the drums, I would donate my time." The day of Chloe?s first lesson Asya showed up as well, and her parents asked if McGerr would consider including her. He said yes, and what could have been a few introductory lessons turned in to a four year study at the Drum School.

Asya sat down in front a piano one day and began playing while singing quietly to herself, and it caught his ear. Their duets became Chloe on the drums while Asya sang and played keyboards. McGerr would listen to them at the beginning of a lesson and encourage the best ideas, and they would then arrange and rehearse those ideas until they became songs. Soon they were going home with burned CDs of what had been documented earlier in their lessons. The rest, as they
say, is history.

Smoosh have toured with Jimmy Eat World and Mates of State and played with Rilo Kiley, Pearl Jam, Death Cab for Cutie, Sleater-Kinney, and Cat Power (who paid tribute to the band by lip synching their rap song, "Rad" at 2004's Sasquatch! music festival.) They were interviewed on the Today Show, have been featured on "All Things Considered" on NPR, and were nominated for Spin's 2005 "Band of the Year." They are 12 and 14 years old, respectively.

Smoosh write songs that capture pure enthusiasm and the unadulterated bliss of making music for the joy of it. They work hard, they tour and practice, but they play because they want to. Being in a band is the ultimate extracurricular activity. Says Chloe: "My favorite thing is how when I play out places, it makes me feel all happy." Smoosh play rock shows, and they also play soccer.

Smoosh are two sisters and best friends, totally psyched to be jamming together, and totally psyched to share it with you.