The Doubleclicks

This article is about the nerd-folk duo. For the internet ad-serving company owned by Google, see DoubleClick. For the computer term, see double-click.
The Doubleclicks
Background information
Origin Portland, Oregon, United States
Genres Nerd-folk, Comedy, Singer-Songwriter
Instruments cello, guitar, ukulele, electronic
Years active 2011–present
Associated acts Molly Lewis, Paul and Storm, Joseph Scrimshaw, Kevin Murphy
Website thedoubleclicks.com
Members Aubrey Webber (cello)
Angela Webber (guitar, ukulele)
Nothing to Prove
A short sample of "Nothing to Prove" from the duo's second album Lasers and Feelings (2013).
Dimetrodon
A short sample of "Dimetrodon" from the duo's third album Dimetrodon (2014).
Problems playing these files? See media help.
Photograph of the sisters in woodland.
Angela Webber (left) and Aubrey Webber (right)

The Doubleclicks are a nerd-folk musical duo based in Portland, Oregon, consisting of sisters Angela Webber (on guitar, ukulele, or cat keyboard[1]) and Aubrey Webber (cello). They are known for performing nerd-friendly comedy music, including songs about Dungeons & Dragons, dinosaurs, and other similar themes.

History

The Webber sisters grew up in Westford and Boston, Massachusetts listening to the Smothers Brothers (particularly their version of "Streets of Laredo"), "Weird Al" Yankovic and Tom Lehrer.[2][3] They were part of a musical and artistic family; their father, Stephen Webber, is a music professor at Berklee College of Music, and they claim to have been playing music since before they could read; their mother, Susan Webber, is a fiber artist and former Spanish teacher.[4][5] Both attended Abbot Elementary, where they first learned to use stringed instruments, and Westford Academy, with Aubrey graduating in 2003 and Angela in 2006.[4][6] They were part of a rock band in high school but had no plans to form a duo.[3] Angela moved to Portland, Oregon to study International Affairs at Lewis & Clark College (with a year at the Anglo-American University in 2008) and Aubrey studied classical cello at the Berklee College of Music before moving to Portland as well.[3][7]

Photograph of the sisters almost back-to-back in front of a microphone stand, with Angela holding a cat-shaped electronic piano.
The Doubleclicks in January 2014 (Angela holding the cat keyboard)

The sisters performed as a duo on open mic nights before booking a real gig at Mississippi Pizza.[3] At first, the band was a part-time endeavour. Angela worked a freelance writer and journalist, at the Beaverton Valley Times and Portland Mercury,[3][8] while Aubrey was a home-care provider for seniors.[3][9] The band started their YouTube channel in 2011 with a 6-month song-a-week project and has since been releasing songs on YouTube and CD and touring throughout the US. They write many songs that are funny and emphasize geeky topics.[8] Angela initially wrote most of the songs but describes their more recent songs as a collaborative effort. They often perform at pop culture conventions, at entertainment events such as w00tstock, and in nontraditional music venues such as comic shops and game stores.[10]

Their third album, Lasers and Feelings, debuted at #7 on Billboard's Comedy Albums chart.[11]

The Doubleclicks made a video for their song "Nothing to Prove" about acceptance of women in geek culture.[7][12][13] The video featured appearances from celebrities including Kelly Sue DeConnick, Wil Wheaton and Adam Savage—and was covered in print and online media, gaining over 1 million views on YouTube.

In 2014, The Doubleclicks ran a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for their fourth album, Dimetrodon, produced by Mike Phirman.[14] The campaign raised over $80,000 and was the most successful Portland music Kickstarter to date.[15][16] Angela quit her day job in December 2011,[4] while the success of the Kickstarter campaign allowed Aubrey to quit her job as well, leaving both sisters able to work full-time on being the Doubleclicks.[9][16]

Music

Photograph of the sisters; Aubrey on the left playing a cello and Angela on the right playing a guitar.
The Doubleclicks performing in January 2014

Commonly the lyrics to their songs are written by Angela while Aubrey creates the music.[17]

Geek music

The Doubleclicks describe themselves as part of the nerd-folk genre; which is similar to geek rock and nerdcore but without either drums or rapping.[3] Their participation in geek music was not originally intended; it grew naturally from their music and allowed them to tap into the nerd community. Angela Webber stated in 2012, "I don't know if we ever really intended to write 'geeky music'—and that's not exclusively what we do. I write songs about things I think about, which are love, depression, and games and movies"[8] and later, in 2014, "Everybody has self-important, sad love songs. We were doing something that was still earnest, but instead of talking about trees or nature or clubbing, we were using World of Warcraft as a metaphor for sadness."[2] Separately in 2014, she further explained "Our songs are essentially about feelings and about our own experiences. It just happens to be that the metaphors we are making are nerdy ones because those are the cultural touchstones we have."[17] With the increase in the geek demographic, the duo believes that the "geek music" distinction may be becoming redundant.[18]

Touring highlights

Ladies of Ragnarok

The Doubleclicks toured with Molly Lewis (and special guests such as Marian Call and Kevin Murphy) in a combined show called "Ladies of Ragnarok" in September 2012.[19][20] This was Molly's first tour and the Clicks' second; it covered a variety of venues through the American Northeast and Midwest.[10]

JoCo Cruise Crazy

In February 2013 the Doubleclicks were featured performers on the third JoCo Cruise Crazy, a music cruise series based around Jonathan Coulton, Paul and Storm and similar performers[21]

Velociraptour

In May 2013 the Doubleclicks went on a cross-country tour dubbed "Velociraptour" after the subject of their song "Clever Girl."[22]

Discography

Photograph of Angela playing a guitar and singing into a microphone.
Angela Webber in 2012
Photograph of Aubrey playing a cello.
Aubrey Webber in 2012

Studio albums

EPs

Compilation albums

References

  1. ↑ "The DoubleClicks at ThinkGeek". Dreaming About Other Worlds. June 13, 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Barron, Joe (September 26, 2014). "The Doubleclicks’ nerd rock in Ardmore Oct. 5". Ticket Entertainment.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Vondersmith, Jason (16 May 2012). "The Sound of Nerd". Portland Tribune.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Russell, Melissa (September 15, 2012). "Musician talks shop; recalls youth". Westford Eagle. p. A6.
  5. ↑ Notman, Alex (March 6, 2014). "Double Trouble". Eugene Weekly.
  6. ↑ Russell, Melissa (September 15, 2012). "Nerd rockers revisit Westford roots". Westford Eagle.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Clarey, Brian (October 16, 2013). "The Doubleclicks: Sister Act Sings a Song (of Fire and Ice)". Yes! Weekly.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Henriksen, Erik (April 26, 2012). "Dungeon Masters: The Doubleclicks Destroy Children's Souls". The Portland Mercury.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Mohan, Marc (January 21, 2015). "The Doubleclicks kick off a busy 2015, including a pair of weekend Portland shows: The Week in Geek". The Oregonian.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Maiuri, Ken (October 10, 2012). "Clubland: The Doubleclicks perform Monday at Modern Myths in Northampton". Daily Hampshire Gazette.
  11. ↑ "Comedy Albums". Billboard. July 27, 2013. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  12. ↑ McGinnis, Jeff (July 30, 2013). "McGinnis: The Doubleclicks take aim at ‘fake geek girl’ criticism". Toledo Free Press. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
  13. ↑ Moody, Jennifer (August 4, 2013). "Geek girls, represent". Albany Democrat-Herald.
  14. ↑ "The Doubleclicks' New Album "Dimetrodon" + Weekly Songs!". Kickstarter. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  15. ↑ Greenwald, David (February 18, 2014). "Geek-pop duo the Doubleclicks hit $80,000 with biggest Portland Kickstarter music project yet". The Oregonian. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Vondersmith, Jason (10 June 2014). "Songs for nerdly ears". Portland Tribune.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Granshaw, Lisa (April 24, 2014). "Debunking the 'fake geek girl' myth with the Doubleclicks". Daily Dot. Retrieved March 27, 2015.
  18. ↑ Selinker, Mike (January 8, 2013). "Geek Love: Kirby Krackle, The Doubleclicks, and the soul of nerd rock". Wired. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
  19. ↑ Riechers, Mark (October 1, 2012). "When it comes to nerdy ballads, the Doubleclicks get specific". The Daily Madison Isthmus.
  20. ↑ "Ladies of Ragnarok". Archived from the original on September 17, 2012.
  21. ↑ "The Entertainment". JoCo Cruise Crazy 3. Archived from the original on January 25, 2013.
  22. ↑ "The Doubleclicks Summer Tour!". The Doubleclicks. April 23, 2013. Archived from the original on June 14, 2013.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Doubleclicks.