Biography
The minimalist post-punk endeavor Sneaks centers on Eva Moolchan, a musician based in Washington, D.C. Her work occupies terrain between spectral indie pop and drifting hip-hop, delivering sharp chanted or spoken-word vocals atop sparse lo-fi bass, drum machine patterns, and restrained keyboards. The earliest recordings reached peak austerity on a self-titled cassette issued in 2014; this material was later expanded and reissued as Gymnastics in 2015. Track lengths mirrored that economy, as just one composition exceeded two minutes. It's a Myth, arriving in 2017, thickened the sonic palette while retaining the lean core, whereas Highway Hypnosis and Happy Birthday ventured further into elaborate territory, introducing wider keyboard textures and samples yet preserving the atmospheric character established at the outset.
Moolchan grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. Her Ethiopian-born mother worked as an accountant, and her father, a musician, presented her with a first guitar at age two. She attended a Washington, D.C., high school populated largely by offspring of politicians and diplomats, an environment that left her feeling detached until she connected with Francy Graham, already immersed in the capital's D.I.Y. punk community. Through Graham, later a member of Chain & the Gang, Moolchan encountered Katie Alice Greer; the pair formed the duo Shitstains, with Moolchan handling guitar and vocals while Greer played drums. Moolchan subsequently contributed to the noise project Blood and performed on bass in Young Trynas before launching Sneaks during breaks from studies at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore.
Following the recording of several pieces featuring Moolchan's lyrics supported only by bass and drum machine, Greer, by then part of Priests, facilitated the release of the Sneaks tracks as an eight-song cassette on the independent Sister Polygon label in 2014. Two additional songs were added, bringing the total duration just past fourteen minutes, and the collection was retitled Gymnastics for an LP edition on the French imprint Danger Records in 2015. Critical response to Gymnastics prompted a signing with Merge Records in the United States, which reissued the debut in September 2016. The follow-up, It's a Myth, appeared on Merge in March 2017 and stretched to a comparatively expansive eighteen minutes. Bass and drum machine remained central, joined by occasional keyboards, yet the arrangements and lyrics conveyed greater ambition and depth than the predecessor. After substantial touring, including support dates with leftist dance-punks Downtown Boys, Sneaks issued Highway Hypnosis in January 2019; the set accentuated the hypnotic qualities of Moolchan's approach while expanding the range of sounds and rhythms. The exploratory Happy Birthday followed a year later, extending that trajectory of growth and reuniting her with engineer and producer Carlos Hernadez.
Moolchan grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. Her Ethiopian-born mother worked as an accountant, and her father, a musician, presented her with a first guitar at age two. She attended a Washington, D.C., high school populated largely by offspring of politicians and diplomats, an environment that left her feeling detached until she connected with Francy Graham, already immersed in the capital's D.I.Y. punk community. Through Graham, later a member of Chain & the Gang, Moolchan encountered Katie Alice Greer; the pair formed the duo Shitstains, with Moolchan handling guitar and vocals while Greer played drums. Moolchan subsequently contributed to the noise project Blood and performed on bass in Young Trynas before launching Sneaks during breaks from studies at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore.
Following the recording of several pieces featuring Moolchan's lyrics supported only by bass and drum machine, Greer, by then part of Priests, facilitated the release of the Sneaks tracks as an eight-song cassette on the independent Sister Polygon label in 2014. Two additional songs were added, bringing the total duration just past fourteen minutes, and the collection was retitled Gymnastics for an LP edition on the French imprint Danger Records in 2015. Critical response to Gymnastics prompted a signing with Merge Records in the United States, which reissued the debut in September 2016. The follow-up, It's a Myth, appeared on Merge in March 2017 and stretched to a comparatively expansive eighteen minutes. Bass and drum machine remained central, joined by occasional keyboards, yet the arrangements and lyrics conveyed greater ambition and depth than the predecessor. After substantial touring, including support dates with leftist dance-punks Downtown Boys, Sneaks issued Highway Hypnosis in January 2019; the set accentuated the hypnotic qualities of Moolchan's approach while expanding the range of sounds and rhythms. The exploratory Happy Birthday followed a year later, extending that trajectory of growth and reuniting her with engineer and producer Carlos Hernadez.
Albums
Singles
