SRSQ

SRSQ (pronounced "seer-skew") is the solo musical project of Texas-based musician Kennedy Ashlyn, formerly the vocalist and keyboardist for Santa Cruz, California duo Them Are Us Too. After Ashlyn's partner in that duo, Cash Askew, died in the Ghost Ship warehouse fire in 2016, Ashlyn retired their shared name and started making music as SRSQ. Her solo debut album, Unreality, was released on October 26, 2018, and her second album, Ever Crashing, was released on August 19, 2022, both by Dais Records.

Not to be confused with the abbreviation for the San Rafael and San Quentin Railroad.
SRSQ
Birth nameKennedy Ashlyn Wenning
Also known asKennedy Ashlyn
OriginSanta Cruz, California
GenresDream pop
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Vocals, keyboards
LabelsDais
Formerly ofThem Are Us Too

Early life

Ashlyn, full name Kennedy Ashlyn Wenning,[1] started off in music singing in a choir at age 5. She performed in musical theater and show choir in school and took a year of opera training in college. She started making noise pop music solo under the Them Are Us Too name in high school.[2] Growing up, Ashlyn's favorite band was the B-52's, and she also grew up listening to bands such as Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance, and the Sundays, music she picked up on from her mom's taste.[2]

Ashlyn went to college at University of California, Santa Cruz, living in a house. Her housemates offered to host their friend Askew's 19th birthday party in 2012. The party was goth-themed, with an Askew-curated soundtrack including Cocteau Twins, Depeche Mode, and the Sisters of Mercy. Neither Ashlyn nor Askew were goths, but they shared interest in the music and aesthetic which none of their other friends did.[3][4][5] Less than 24 hours later, after performing her third-ever solo show, Ashlyn asked Askew to join Them Are Us Too.[2][5]

Career

Them Are Us Too

The duo recorded a demo together and toured the West Coast. They signed to Dais Records and both dropped out of school.[3] Dais released their debut album, Remain, on March 24, 2015,[6] when the duo were both 21 years old.[7] They toured more and worked on more music, but never released a second album together.[4] On December 2, 2016, a fire broke out at the former warehouse-turned-concert venue the Ghost Ship in Fruitvale, Oakland, California.[8] Askew was among 36 people who died in the fire, with her body having been identified two days after.[7][9] Ashlyn's last conversation with Askew, from earlier in the day of the fire, was about a demo the latter had recorded for the song "No One", the first song Askew had written for the duo.[2]

Ashlyn, having moved to Dallas the previous year, flew back to Oakland immediately, staying at Askew's girlfriend Anya Dross's house. The two started making music together,[3][5] and performed a cover of Jimmy Eat World's "Sweetness" in tribute to Askew at a benefit concert on December 14,[10] before Ashlyn returned to Dallas the following January. She spent most of the subsequent six months in bed, accomplishing little beyond her debut SRSQ show in May 2017. She has said she remembers little of that period, even what songs she performed at the May concert.[3][5] After a time working as SRSQ, Ashlyn got back in the studio with Dross and Askew's stepfather Sunny Haire to record one last Them Are Us Too release. That album, Amends, was released on June 29, 2018, by Dais.[4] Amends consists mainly of songs written by the duo which were planned to be on their eventual second album, with the closing title track having been written by Ashlyn as her "own goodbye to the project and to Cash." The album also includes a finished version of "No One" with lead vocals by Dross. With the release of Amends, Ashlyn officially retired Them Are Us Too and moved fully into SRSQ.[2]

SRSQ

Ashlyn chose the name SRSQ, pronounced "seer-skew" and originally stylized as "srsQ", as shorthand for "serious question". Ashlyn says that because of the two words which act as its phonetic components, its meaning has expanded to include being "like a warped seer, or a skewed vision."[11][9] The project was originally intended as an outlet for Ashlyn to experiment with pop song remixes and noise music.[12]

Ashlyn gave her first performance as SRSQ in May 2017.[5] On August 24, 2018, she announced her debut solo album Unreality,[13] which was released by Dais on October 26.[14] Her second album, Ever Crashing, was announced on May 9, 2022,[15] and released on August 19, also by Dais.[11]

In February 2023, SRSQ was announced as part of the lineup of Oblivion Access, a music festival in Austin, Texas, which will run from June 15-18.[16] The next month, she was announced to be joining Frankie Rose on a tour of US and Canada in May and June.[17]

Style

SRSQ is primarily referred to as a dream pop project,[18][19] though her music has also been said to include genres such as darkwave, post-punk,[14] and gothic rock,[20] and has been compared to artists such as Cocteau Twins, My Bloody Valentine, and Dead Can Dance.[13]

Ashlyn has described Cocteau Twins as "kind of in my blueprint as a person and artist", and also named major influences such as Slowdive and the Knife.[9]

Equipment

Ashlyn primarily writes and plays music on synthesizers such as a Yamaha PSR-48 and a Roland JX-3P, which she runs through effects pedals including the DOD Electronics Death Metal Distortion FX86B, Boss MT-2 Metal Zone, and Strymon BlueSky reverb pedal. She uses Roland's VT-3 Aira for vocal manipulation.[9]

Personal life

Ashlyn currently lives in East Dallas, Texas, having moved to the state in 2015 to be with her girlfriend, fellow musician Leigh Violet of Psychic Killers and Visage Irregular. Ashlyn met Violet while on tour with Them Are Us Too, and decided to move across the country to be with her despite being advised against doing so.[9][11][21]

Ashlyn has been diagnosed with ADHD and bipolar disorder, which served as the main inspiration and subject matter for Ever Crashing.[11] She self-identifies as a queer femme.[22]

Discography
See also: Them Are Us Too § Studio albums

Albums

EPs
  • "Unreality" Live Sessions (2020)

Singles
SRSQ singles
Year Title Album
2018 "The Martyr"[23] Unreality
2019 "Temporal Love" / "Unkept"[18] Non-album single
2022 "Someday I Will Bask in the Sun"[24] Ever Crashing
"Saved for Summer"[25]
"Used to Love"[26]
"Abyss"[19]

References
  1. Burket, Brent (January 10, 2017). "Nurturing the Experimental Music Underground". Hyperallergic. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  2. Maril, Madge (September 19, 2018). "Them Are Us Too's Kennedy Ashlyn Speaks on Bringing Amends to Light". Women in Rock. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  3. Friedlander, Emilie; Ashlyn, Kennedy (January 24, 2017). "Them Are Us Too's Kennedy Ashlyn Remembers Bandmate Cash Askew". AdHoc. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  4. Vera, Vicente (May 30, 2018). "After devastating loss, Them Are Us Too prepare final album Amends". The Bay Bridged. Archived from the original on February 20, 2023. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  5. "Kennedy Ashlyn's Post-Tragedy Renaissance". V. March 1, 2019. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  6. Hillis, Dean O (May 1, 2015). "Review: Them Are Us Too – Remain". Slug Mag. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  7. "Them Are Us Too Co-Founder Cash Askew Among Dead in Oakland Warehouse Fire". Billboard. December 4, 2016. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  8. Wallace-Wells, Benjamin (December 13, 2016). "What Happened, Exactly, in Oakland's Ghost Ship Fire?". The New Yorker. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  9. Sheppard, Oliver (February 5, 2019). "Scope Out Dream Pop Sensation SRSQ's 2019 Tour Dates + Exclusive Interview!". Post-Punk.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  10. Pershan, Caleb (December 15, 2016). "Scenes from the 'Oakland United' Ghost Ship Benefit Concert Featuring Hieroglyphics, Tune-Yards, Primus, and More". SFist. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  11. Velasquez, Juan (August 18, 2022). "SRSQ's New Album Ever Crashing is Beautifully Devastating". Them. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  12. Schube, Will (October 22, 2018). "SRSQ's Floating, Abstract Unreality Mines Grief You Can't Talk About". Vice. Retrieved May 10, 2023.
  13. "SRSQ Announces Debut Album Unreality". New Noise Magazine. August 24, 2018. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  14. Stasis, Spyros (October 24, 2018). "The Debut Record of SRSQ Arrives With a Dark '80s Nostalgia". PopMatters. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  15. "SRSQ announces new album, Ever Crashing". Treble. May 9, 2022. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  16. Pearis, Bill (February 28, 2023). "Oblivion Access 2023 adds Faust, TR/ST, Clipping. & Earth, Duster, more (full lineup)". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  17. Pearis, Bill (March 7, 2023). "Frankie Rose announces North American tour with SRSQ (new album out this week)". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  18. "Dreampop Project SRSQ Debuts Heartbreaking "Temporal Love" Single". Post-Punk.com. November 22, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  19. Teeple, Alice (July 19, 2022). "Dreampop Siren SRSQ Sinks into the Dark with her Video for "Abyss"". Post-Punk.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  20. Fitzmaurice, Larry (October 29, 2018). "SRSQ: Unreality Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  21. Brown, August (October 18, 2018). "After the Oakland Ghost Ship fire, Kennedy Ashlyn finds hope with her new electronic project SRSQ". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  22. Schmidt, Samantha (December 5, 2016). ""All we could do was stand there": She watched Oakland's inferno consume the one she loved the most". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  23. Kameir, Rawiya (August 22, 2018). "SRSQ's "The Martyr" feels like flying". The Fader. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  24. "31 New Songs Out Today". BrooklynVegan. January 12, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  25. Hatfield, Amanda (May 9, 2022). "SRSQ announces new LP Ever Crashing, (watch "Saved for Summer" video)". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  26. Major, Michael (June 7, 2022). "SRSQ (Kennedy Ashlyn) Releases "Used to Love" Single From Ever Crashing Album". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
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