What They Do

Oregon’s favorite folk sisters recently returned from “band camp.” Thankfully, stories that could veer into American Pie’s “This one time, when I was at band camp…” territory don’t end with sticky flutes but with the Shook Twins recording their fourth album What We Do with producer Ryan Hadlock. Hadlock is the same dude behind The Lumineer’s self-titled, Grammy-nominated record (remember the summer of 2012’s “Ho Hey” frenzy?). The Shook Twins host an album release party Friday, May 2, at McDonald Theatre.

“We’re kinda buddies with The Lumineers,” Katelyn Shook tells me over the phone from the band’s tour bus. “We played a show with them before they warped to level 10. They played in our basement one night in Portland.” From this friendship, they were able to reach out to Hadlock.

Before long, the band was recording at Hadlock’s Bear Creek Studio outside Seattle. “It’s like this old barn totally remade into this multimillion dollar studio,” Shook says, fondly remembering a nearby creek with chirping frogs (they make a cameo on “Toll Free”).“We all stayed up there together.”

And “We” has morphed from the twins (Laurie is the other half) — who, combined, provide vocals, guitar, glockenspiel, mandolin, banjo, bass, ocarina, djembe and beatboxing — to a five-person outfit including Anna Tivel on fiddle and mando, Kyle Volkman on upright bass and Niko Daoussis on mando, electric guitar and drum kit.

“This is the first album we have drums on,” Shook says. “Electric guitar too. It’s got a little bit more soul and rock-y, groovy style.” The album’s theme is loose; when pushed, Shook says it ranges from love to the apocalypse. “There are a couple of love songs, which is atypical for us,” she says. The upbeat “end-of-the-world” ditty “Shake” premiered on USA Today’s website.

There’s no doubt that the Shook star is rising fast, yet the band still eschews the conventional record-label route; they raised $26,000 via Kickstarter to produce What We Do. “It’s an excellent way to make a record,” Shook says. “You can get funding from your fans and build it together. Record labels take such a big cut. That’s why we decided to do it.”

Fruition, another Portland folk-rock favorite, joins the Shook Twins for the first time at the McDonald. “We are really good friends,” Shook says of the two bands. “We’ve been trying so hard to do some co-bills with them for a long time.”

The Shook Twins kick off their album release party with Fruition 8 pm Friday, May 2, at McDonald Theatre; $15 adv., $20 door.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!