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OKAY, SO I’VE BEEN meaning to do this post for a while. A very long while. You may remember (back in the infant days of The Sister Project) a little series called Sister Jams (Not Jellies), in which I highlighted all kinds of sibling bands and otherwise sisterly songs. (It was a broad sort of umbrella, really). In any case, that recent post I did about Kathleen Hanna reminded me of how Le Tigre’s “Hot Topic” is a much-needed third wave feminist-y addition to the list. And for nostalgia’s sake, how about we visit some of the old Sister Jams standards?

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Care to add on?

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AGAIN. YES, OUR FAVORITE CANADIAN identical twins have a new album. I haven’t listened to it all, but I like what I’ve heard. Above is the video for their new single, Hell. Things I like about it: origami, striped shirts, old TVs, Kitty cutouts, and–of course–the sisterly vibe oozing out of those motel rooms. Interested in more sister music? Check out these past posts on sibling bands and sisterly songs. We also have a mini-directory here. Enjoy!

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WATCHING SISTERS MARIA, Lucia and Angella Ahn of Ahn Trio perform (even if it’s just on youtube) gives me the shivers. Their chemistry is palpable and powerful, and probably one of the main reasons that they’ve been asked by countless composers to premiere contemporary classical work. The trio has collaborated with dancers and pop musicians, thriving on dissolving the barriers of musical genre. They have an amazing website, chock-full of photos, recordings and videos. You can also learn more about Ahn Trio in the TSP Sisterpedia.

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M AVIS STAPLES MAKES my life better. Enough said.

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T HE STORY OF COCOROSIE is a complex fairy tale, full of whimsical characters and wild history—each layer of the band’s identity peels back to reveal further webs of stories. Part of what makes CocoRosie so compelling is the very exploration of identity and narrative within the band’s music and image. Its members, sisters Bianca and Sierra Casady, draw inspiration from drag queens and cabaret stars. Their fashion style (which is very much a part of their music) is sort of Coney Island meets Little Miss Moffat meets the street. In Paris, the sisters are fashion icons, frequently gracing the covers of contemporary Parisian fashion magazines. The band’s sound is similarly juxtaposed, combining in-your-face lyrics and sounds with the noise of children’s toys and melodies on Sierra’s scratchy, baby-like soprano voice.

The sisters’ personal history follows much of the same tune, with a nomadic childhood beginning on a farm in the Midwest. Bianca and Sierra currently have over a dozen half brothers and sisters. (Werewolf, performed above, was written after their older brother died in 2006, and is largely about the sisters’ estranged relationship with their father.)

Bianca (left) is 26; Sierra is 28

CocoRosie formed in 2004 with the release of their first album, La maison de mon rêve. Prior to recording it, Bianca and Sierra had been out of touch for nearly 10 years. They met up on a sort of chance reunion in Paris, where Sierra had been living and studying opera. They rekindled their childhood relationship, spending hours a day telling each other stories and dreams in Sierra’s Parisian bathroom. They began to record their musical sessions in the bathtub, where the acoustics were best. The result was their debut album and the creation of a band (they appropriately named CocoRosie as an amalgam of their childhood nicknames). CocoRosie has since released two more albums and met much success in the alternative music scene.

I find CocoRosie’s music to be eerily relatable—like the articulation of a common fever dream. The Casady sisters still live in Montmartre, Paris (which happens to be my former digs), where they own a gallery and tea house. If you’d like to learn more about their music or their lives, I highly recommend an article in the New York Times Magazine entitled ‘Twisted Sisters.’ Also, don’t miss CocoRosie’s many performances on youtube, especially this rendition of Hairpin Paradise filmed in their Montmartre living room.

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