He’s My Brother She’s My Sister (HMBSMS), led by the smokin’ hot siblings Rob Kolar and Rachel Kolar, have taken their folk-glam routine to over 200 shows this past year alone. They made their South Florida debut this past December with a killer performance during Art Basel in Miami. Also, see Music Basel: He’s My Brother She’s My Sister. Not only have the siblings been busy touring, they have been busy making music. They have since released an EP and are once again making their way across the country and back to the Magic City.
Lucky us, before they hitting the road Rob and Lauren of HMBSMS caught us up on the bands latest projects. Lucky you, we took notes!
Did you have a good time on you first visit to Miami? Any tales to tell?
ROB: If I remember correctly we had a little too good of a time there. I think a few of us didn’t end up getting to bed till well after 6 am. It was amazing performing in the garden of The Vagabond with occasional showers and tropical winds swaying the palms and tropical trees.
We tour throughout the country and hit so many cities but that spot definitely stands out and has an original setting and atmosphere for experiencing live music. There are hardly any places in the entire country where you can perform in such exotic conditions.
Tell us about your latest release the Tease EP?
LAUREN: It’s just a little tease, we are releasing a full-length album soon but still wanted to put out some new material including some wild live versions of songs we have previously released and covers we have enjoyed performing over the last few years.
Which are your favorite tracks?
LAUREN: I love our cover of The Velvet Underground’s What Goes On. It’s one of my favorite songs to perform live I think because the song’s tempo. It makes it difficult to articulate all of the tap sounds within each tap step so I see it as a really fun challenge to try and make sure I get each one right and soundin’ good.
I like songs where I get to push myself as a tap dancer, get out of the comfort zone. I also really like listening to the guitar on this track.
ROB: Each of the eight songs brings something to the table. I particularly like the energy and raw slide playing on Let It Live Free and the urgency and live pulse of How I Gonna Get Back Home. I think this live version on the EP tops the studio version we did earlier.
Was there any experimentation or collaboration involved in the making of the EP?
ROB: It’s more of a hodgepodge. We ended up recording in 4 different studios and 5 if you include Olivers laptop for the remix. Each pair of songs on the EP has a different flavor and quality.
The last two are separate versions of the same song, Escape Tonight. The first version I recorded in my old apt living room and the second is the reinterpretation by our bassist who remixed it as a slightly experimental dance track.
How long will you be the road? Any shows you are looking forward to?
ROB: Forever. Haha. That’s how it feels sometimes. We always love the South — Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, etc. We are particularly excited to play our next big show in New York in front of what will hopefully be thousands of people supporting Charles Bradley and Neko Case.
LAUREN: We are touring pretty consistently throughout the Summer stopping all over this fine country. I love being in the South particularly being in Florida. The weather is perfect, the beaches are close, and the people are nice.
When can we expect the new album?
ROB: This is one of our main focuses at the moment. A lot of the work we’ve been doing has been leading up to the release of the album. We are all very excited as the album will really help shape our identity as a band.
Expect an array of sounds on the record — rockabilly stomps, sing along anthems, swinging bluesy romps, some more introspective ballads, a hint of blue eyed soul and some odes to 50’s rock and roll.
Here’s a track they shared with us from the Tease EP:
“Robert Kolar has been writing and performing for for several years. He recently received first prize in The John Lennon Songwriting Contest for a song he wrote for HMSMS, Same Old Ground.
“Lauren Brown has been tap dancing around since she was 8 years old. She created a new form of continuous rhythm with her feet acting as a hi-hat and snare drum to propel the band’s sound.”