Music Review: Free to Stay
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that there's no questionable content on
this CD, the sophomore outing by two Seattle sisters who, well,
aren't even sophomores yet in real life. Messages include being
yourself, appreciating your family, and being a good role
model.
Families can talk about why Smoosh's music sounds different
from most of the other stuff you hear on the radio. Is it
because they have positioned themselves squarely in the "indie
music" category, because they are very young songwriters, or
both? Do you think you could write and perform songs as well as
Asya and Chloe do? Do you think it's more important to make
music that fits some predefined rules, or to be yourself?
The qualities that make Smoosh appealing (music really and truly created by tweens; minimalist instrumentation accomplished without a lot of apparent adult supervision; innocuous and highly repetitive lyrics) are the same ones that make this young Seattle-based duo vaguely annoying as well. Rambling, stream-of-consciousness vocals on FREE TO STAY address youthful concerns with simplistic rhymes ("I would go every time you say/never saying it's OK/No matter what you say to me/never saying it's alright/No matter what you say to me now/I'm never trying again") and musicianship that evokes kids let loose in a basement rec room with some pretty fancy toys at their disposal.
Although the girls have obvious talent, the vocals often veer off into tuneless warbling and the simple drum-keyboard mix gets a bit tedious by the end. The strongest moments are those that make us wonder how many Joni Mitchell and Blondie albums are lying around Asya and Chloe's parents' house. Most important: These young (12 and 14) sisters are having fun expressing their own creative selves.
Aly & AJJoss Stone
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
