At first, the name made me a little nervous. Smoosh. Who names their band Smoosh?

I quickly discovered that a band consisting of two tweenagers does. OK, but then, who listens to a 12- and 14-year-old duo that calls itself Smoosh?

Well, apparently I do, for one.

Awkward name or not, sisters Asya and Chloe (their parents withhold their last name for privacy reasons) have charmed me, via their sophomore release (yeah, they are on album No. 2 already) "Free To Stay," into their brightly colored indie pop world.

And I'm not the only one. They've toured with Death Cab For Cutie -- which makes sense considering Death Cab's drummer, Jason McGerr, took on young Chloe as his protégé at the Seattle Drum School -- they've opened for Jimmy Eat World and Rilo Kiley and recently got signed to Seattle's Barsuk Records.

It's easy to see why. "Free To Stay"'s energetic opener, "Find a Way," sounds a bit like a nod to fellow Barsukians Mates of State, with its pleasant two-part harmonies floating over a choppy organ and drums.

Asya, the elder at 14, provides the vocals, and she's got a pleasant Fiona Apple-like thing going -- distinct at times by a soft rasp and others flowing with fluidity.

Although it's easy to hear her youth, she projects with confidence and impressive vocal dexterity, making her delivery hard-hitting when she wants it to be and girlishly soft seconds later.

Title track "Free To Stay" made NPR's song of the day pick just six days after the album's release on June 6, and while the tune has the markings of a professionally polished, timeless pop song, it's fun ditties like "Gold" and "Clap On" that reveal the sisters' rock chops and make the band so delightfully infectious.

So there you have it. Smoosh is truly an indie rock refresher and, especially when compared to all those 20-somethings whining their way through snotty, three-chord cookie cutter song formulas, the Smoosh girls sound like pros.

Catch the girls opening for The Eels at the Pabst Theater on Thursday, Aug. 3.

3 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review.

Recent Talkbacks ...

Posted by OMCreader on Aug. 1, 2006 at 10:55 a.m. (report)

T15 said: Bad

Posted by OMCreader on July 28, 2006 at 3:19 p.m. (report)

Darlene said: These girls are amazing. They are not pop tarts, they are real musicians.

Posted by OMCreader on July 28, 2006 at 3:02 p.m. (report)

FUMKE said: Cool Stuff!

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