Shook Twins

Shook Twins
Background information
Origin	Sandpoint, Idaho
Genres	Folk, pop, indie rock
Years active	2004-present
Labels	Dutch Records
Members	Katelyn Shook Laurie Shook Niko Daoussis Aber Miller
Past members	Lane Exworthy Josh Simon Barra Brown Kyle Volkman Colin Duclos
Website	www.shooktwins.com

Shook Twins is a folk music group originally from Sandpoint, Idaho and currently based in Portland, Oregon, formed in 2004. The nucleus of the band consists of identical twin sisters Katelyn (guitar, mandolin, banjo, glockenspiel, telephone microphone) and Laurie Shook (banjo, guitar, tambourine, golden egg).

Their style of music is often referred to as "quirky folk", which incorporates acoustic instrumentation including banjo, guitar, upright bass, mandolin, ukulele, glockenspiel, djembe, and their signature golden egg. Twin harmonies layered on top of acoustic instrumentation are coupled with Laurie’s beatboxing and inventive use of a looping machine, and Katelyn’s repurposed telephone microphone. The use of electronics sets their sound apart, creating an eclectic and eccentric blend of folk, roots, pop and fun. A Shook Twins staple is the addition of choruses or lines from other contemporary songs to their own songs, remix-style.

They have toured coast to coast performing at festivals including High Sierra Music Festival, Oregon Country Fair, Hulaween, Northwest String Summit, Summer Camp Music Festival, Electric Forest, Lightning in a Bottle, Joshua Tree Music Festival, Arise Music Festival, Four Corners Folk Festival, Fayetteville Roots and more.

History

Katelyn and Laurie Shook were born in 1984 and grew up in Sandpoint in the Idaho Panhandle. At a very young age, the twins started singing, joining the choir in fifth grade which they continued in high school. They developed their musical repertoire and talent throughout their teen years and subsequently enrolled at the University of Idaho at Moscow in 2002 to pursue radio/TV/digital media majors. In 2004, they both took a year off from college and played their first paid gig at a restaurant. Soon after they secured a regular gig at a winery and established themselves as the "Shook Twins". The sisters played in and around Sandpoint and northern Idaho, releasing their first album You Can Have the Rest in 2008. Advancing their career, the sisters moved to Portland in December 2009, where they worked on their 2011 release Window. Kyle Volkman was an original member of the band joining in 2007 but left for a time and rejoined the sisters in Portland in 2009. Niko Daoussis (vocals, mandolin, guitar) formerly of The Bucky Walters joined the band as a full-time member in 2012 and often performs as his solo act, Cyber Cambel.

On April 6, 2012, an exclusive audio track "Hooks" debuted on MTV Hive. On April 23, 2012, the Shook Twins' song "Rose" was featured in NPR's The Muse Mix: 100 Songs That Cry Her Name. Shook Twins recorded in April/May 2013 with Grammy-nominated producer Ryan Hadlock (The Lumineers, Milo Green) at his Bear Creek Studios in Woodinville, Washington. A new song/video premiere from their forthcoming album debuted on Relix on July 26, 2013. Katelyn and Laurie Shook's side projects include partnering with fellow Portland musician Ben Darwish with the group Morning Ritual on his folk opera "The Clear Blue Pearl." A recent live studio session from Oregon Public Broadcasting was featured on OPB's website. On April 5, 2018, Shook Twins debuted their single "Stay Wild" on Baeble Music.

In 2021, Shook Twins were reported to be appearing on the podcast Storybound.

Band members

• Katelyn Shook (vocals, guitar)
• Laurie Shook (vocals, banjo)
• Niko Daoussis (mandolin, guitar, vocals)
• Aber Miller (keyboard, key bass)

Discography

Albums

• You Can Have The Rest (Curlypinky Records, 2007)
• Live In The Shop (2009)
• Window (Curlypink Records, 2011)
• What We Do (Curlypinky Records, 2014)
• Some Good Lives (Dutch Records, 2019)

Singles

• "Rose" (2011)
• "Holler It Down" (2013)
• "Shake" (2014)
• "Thoughts All In" (2014)
• "Hooks" (2014)
• "Awhile" (2014)
• "Call Me Out" (2016)
• "Mad Scientist" (2017)
• "Safe" (2017)
• "Shake" (2017)
• "Stay Wild" (2018)
• "What Have We Done" (2019)

EPs

• Live at The Triple Door (2013)
• 2 (2017)

References

• Black, Jessica (April 10, 2012). "The Shook Twins plus one: A Q/A with Katelyn Shook". Oregon Music News. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Frye, Cory (September 14, 2012). "Time to Swim". Corvallis Gazette Times. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Ham, Robert (March 27, 2013). "The Girls With The Golden Egg". Willamette Weekly. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Teel, Eric (April 23, 2012). "The Muse Mix: 100 Songs That Cry Her Name". NPR.org. Retrieved 2015-05-29.

Further reading

• Berry, Harrington (July 15, 2014). "Shook Twins to American Idol: Thanks But No Thanks". Boise Weekly. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Burke, David (April 15, 2015). "Shook Twins have identical tastes, too". Quad-City Times. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Riggin, John (December 3, 2014). "Harmonious Shook Twins bring quirky tunes to Lost on Main". Chico Enterprise-Record. Retrieved 2015-05-29.

Interviews

• Ammann, Ana (May 22, 2015). "Shook Twins: Soul twins – Q&A from OMN the Magazine". Oregon Music Magazine. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Lindberg, Erica (June 2, 2014). "Shook Twins: Real Gals With Real Magic". 303magazine.com. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Olson, Ben (Winter 2022). "From Folk to Funk: The Shook Twins are just getting started". Sandpoint Magazine. Retrieved 2023-01-18.
• Pollstar (March 12, 2014). "One Half of Shook Twins". Pollstar. Retrieved 2015-05-29.
• Spruce, Lacey (October 23, 2013). "Brain Pickin': Shook Twins Bring Their Eclectic Sound to Denver". 303magazine.com. Retrieved 2015-05-29.

Reviews

• Mansfield, Brian (February 20, 2014). "Premiere: Shook Twins' Shake". USA Today. Retrieved 2015-05-29.

External links

• Official website
• shooktwins