SRSQ (pronounced "seer-skew") is the solo musical project of American singer and keyboardist Kennedy Ashlyn. Ashlyn started making music under the name Them Are Us Too in high school, later expanding the group to a duo after meeting Cash Askew in college. After releasing one album together, Askew died in the Ghost Ship warehouse fire in 2016. Ashlyn retired their shared name and started working as SRSQ the following year. Under the name, Ashlyn has released two albums, '' Unreality'' (2018) and ''Ever Crashing'' (2022). SRSQ's

dream pop Dream pop (also typeset as dreampop) is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such ...

-centric sound has drawn comparisons to bands such as

Cocteau Twins Cocteau Twins were a Scottish rock music, rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth on the Firth of Forth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981. In 19 ...

Early life

Ashlyn, full name Kennedy Ashlyn Wenning, 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 Noise pop is a subgenre of alternative and indie rock that developed in the mid-1980s in the United Kingdom and United States. It is defined by its mixture of dissonant noise or feedback with the songcraft more often found in pop music. Shoegaz ...

music solo under the Them Are Us Too name in high school. Growing up, Ashlyn's favorite band was

the B-52's The B-52s, originally presented as the B-52's (with an errant apostrophe; used until 2008), are an American band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, k ...

, and she also grew up listening to bands such as Cocteau Twins,

Dead Can Dance Dead Can Dance are a British-Australian band founded in Melbourne in 1981 by Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard, before relocating to London the following year. The Australian music historian Ian McFarlane described Dead Can Dance's style as "const ...

, and

the Sundays The Sundays were an English alternative rock band, formed in Bristol. The band's lineup consisted of lead vocalist Harriet Wheeler, guitarist David Gavurin, bassist Paul Brindley, and drummer Patrick Hannan. Percussionist Lindsay Jamieson was ...

, music she picked up on from her mom's taste. Ashlyn went to college at

University of California, Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of C ...

, 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

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Basildon, Essex in 1980. Originally formed with the line-up of Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher (musician), Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke, the band currently consists ...

, and

the Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy are an English rock band formed in Leeds in 1980. After achieving early underground fame, the band experienced a commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s, sustaining their success until the early 1990s, when they halted th ...

. Neither Ashlyn nor Askew were goths, but they shared interest in the music and aesthetic which none of their other friends did. Less than 24 hours later, after performing her third-ever solo show, Ashlyn asked Askew to join Them Are Us Too.

Career

Them Are Us Too

The duo recorded a demo together and toured the West Coast. They signed to

Dais Records Dais Records is an American independent record label founded in August 2007 by musicians Gibby Miller and Ryan Martin, and based in Los Angeles, California, and Brooklyn, New York. History The label traces its origins to Ryan Martin's time a ...

and both dropped out of school. Dais released their debut album, ''Remain'', on March 24, 2015, when the duo were both 21 years old. They toured more and worked on more music, but never released a second album together. On December 2, 2016, a fire broke out at the former warehouse-turned-concert venue the Ghost Ship in Fruitvale, Oakland, California. Askew was among 36 people who died in the fire, with her body having been identified two days after. 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. 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, and performed a cover of

Jimmy Eat World Jimmy Eat World is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Mesa, Arizona, in 1993. The band is composed of lead vocalist and lead guitarist Jim Adkins, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch, and drummer Zach ...

's "

Sweetness Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones ...

" in tribute to Askew at a benefit concert on December 14, 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. 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. ''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.

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." The project was originally intended as an outlet for Ashlyn to experiment with pop song remixes and

noise music Noise music is a genre of music that is characterised by the expressive use of noise. This type of music tends to challenge the distinction that is made in conventional musical practices between musical and non-musical sound. Noise music include ...

. Ashlyn gave her first performance as SRSQ in May 2017. On August 24, 2018, she announced her debut solo album '' Unreality'', which was released by Dais on October 26. On August 16, 2019,

Uniform A uniform is a variety of costume worn by members of an organization while usually participating in that organization's activity. Modern uniforms are most often worn by armed forces and paramilitary organizations such as police, emergency serv ...

and the Body released the collaborative album ''Everything That Dies Someday Comes Back'', with SRSQ providing vocals to the song "Patron Saint of Regret". The same year, Jorge Elbrecht released the album ''Gloss Coma – 002'', with SRSQ featuring on the song "The Entrance of Cold" alongside Molina and Samantha Urbani. SRSQ's second album, ''Ever Crashing'', was announced on May 9, 2022, and released on August 19, also by Dais. In February 2023, SRSQ was announced as part of the lineup of Oblivion Access, a music festival in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, which will run from June 15-18. The next month, she was announced to be joining

Frankie Rose Frankie Rose (born January 18, 1979) is an American musician and songwriter. She was an original member of Crystal Stilts, Dum Dum Girls, Vivian Girls and Beverly. Career Formerly of bands Vivian Girls and Beverly, Frankie was the drummer f ...

on a tour of US and Canada in May and June. In November, Vyva Melinkolya released the album ''Unbecoming'', featuring SRSQ's vocals on the track "Bruise".

Style

SRSQ is primarily referred to as a

project, though her music has also been said to include genres such as

darkwave Dark wave, or darkwave, is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s. Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics and have been perceived as being dark, ro ...

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

, and

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie an ...

, and has been compared to artists such as

, My Bloody Valentine, and

. Ashlyn has described Cocteau Twins as "kind of in my blueprint as a person and artist", and also named major influences such as

Slowdive Slowdive (stylized in lowercase) are an English people, English rock band that formed in Reading, Berkshire, in 1989. The band consists of Neil Halstead (vocals, guitars), Rachel Goswell (vocals, guitars, keyboards), Christian Savill (guitars) ...

and

the Knife The Knife were a Swedish electronic music duo from Gothenburg, formed in 1999. The group consisted of siblings Karin and Olof Dreijer, who together also run their own record company, Rabid Records. They gained a large international following i ...

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 An effects unit, effects processor, or effects pedal is an electronic device that alters the sound of a musical instrument or other audio source through audio signal processing. Common effects include distortion (music), distortion/overdrive, ...

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.

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. Ashlyn has been diagnosed with

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple ...

and

bipolar disorder Bipolar disorder (BD), previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of Depression (mood), depression and periods of abnormally elevated Mood (psychology), mood that each last from days to weeks, and in ...

, which served as the main inspiration and subject matter for ''Ever Crashing''. She self-identifies as a

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

femme.

Discography

Albums

* '' Unreality'' (2018,

Dais A dais or daïs ( or , American English also but sometimes considered nonstandard)dais
in the Random House Dictionary< ...

) * ''Ever Crashing'' (2022, Dais)

EPs

* ''"Unreality" Live Sessions'' (2020)

Singles

Guest appearances

References

{{reflist Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Musicians from Santa Cruz, California Musicians from Dallas Singers from California Singers from Texas 21st-century American keyboardists Dais Records artists University of California, Santa Cruz alumni People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder American musicians with disabilities People with bipolar disorder American LGBTQ singers American LGBTQ songwriters 21st-century American LGBTQ people Queer singer-songwriters