When it comes to performing live in D.C., Cherub Tree are fairly new to the scene. It’s been a little over a year since they first played locally, but as a band they’re no strangers to live shows. With the release of their debut EP, where are your manners, in May, as well as a new single released earlier this month, they’re already leaving their mark. Cherub Tree plan to celebrate their most recent release with a performance at Quarry House Tavern on Aug. 17.
“We’re excited,” singer Brenna Dascoulias tells City Paper. “We’ve performed there a few times already and we’re glad to be back.”
Fronted by Dascoulias and guitarist Ryan Shakeri with support from drummer Sam Elliott and bassist Izzy Burke, Cherub Tree are a bubblegrunge band that specializes in music that has both a soft indie rock sound and a harder punk edge. Learning to balance the two genres took years of dedication, but they’ve managed to pull it off. “Bubblegrunge is a fitting term for our versatility,” Shakeri says. “We’re able to combine alternative and punk music while making it feel cohesive.”
Finding their perfect sound and releasing music they are happy with has been an especially big accomplishment since Shakeri and Dascoulias had no prior experience being in a band before Cherub Tree. Shakeri describes himself as a “very late bloomer” when it comes to writing and performing music. He always loved listening to ’80s soft rock and ’70s folk, among many other genres, growing up, but only started playing the guitar during his time at George Mason University three years ago.
Shakeri says he was miserable while attending college. He was dealing with feelings of depression, loneliness, and disappointment in where his life was going. During that period, his best times were spent with his guitar. “Music was always good, but during my darkest time, that’s when it spoke to me differently,” he says.
Dascoulias shares a similar story about recently discovering her passion for music. She used to play saxophone in middle school and high school, but, because of an injury, she didn’t get the chance to continue into college. It wasn’t until she met Shakeri in 2019 after graduating from Virginia Tech and experiencing a stressful period of time involving her family that she finally considered playing music again. The two bonded over a similar taste in genres, which eventually led them to form Cherub Tree.
Cherub Tree didn’t have their first performance in D.C. until June 2022 when they opened for Brooklyn band Plastic Picnic at DC9. Dascoulias remembers it being an awkward experience; she didn’t know how to move herself on the stage, and she worried the band didn’t engage with the audience as much as they should have. But that didn’t discourage Cherub Tree. Since then, they’ve performed at venues including the Runaway, Pie Shop, and Jammin Java with bands both local and from other cities. In this time they’ve gained a lot of confidence and learned how to better control a stage. Dascoulias in particular went from being someone who never sang before to someone whose voice consistently captures the attention of her audience. “I feel so much more confident when I sing,” Dascoulias says. “I don’t even think about it anymore. I just do it.”
Cherub Tree’s audience is reacting to the growth quite well. Shakeri and Dascoulias say that, at most of their shows, particularly house shows, they’ve managed to get the crowd to dance and even mosh to their music. Dascoulias specifically remembers one of their shows in 2022 where somebody moshed through the whole set and yelled at the end, “She killed that!”
“That felt really good,” Dascoulias says. “Crowd interaction really does mean a lot to us. It’s what encouraged us to keep going. I’d say at almost all of our shows somebody said something silly or cute. The D.C. music scene is a really sweet and welcoming place.”
If Cherub Tree’s year spent performing onstage was meant to introduce the band to D.C., then the music they’ve released this year was meant to cement their place in the music scene. The where are your manners EP was a massive undertaking. Shakeri, with no prior experience, decided to record and mix it himself and used it as a learning experience. He’s proud of how the EP turned out and says it showcases the versatility Cherub Tree have when balancing very soft tunes with those that are very hard.
“Making the EP was very stressful,” Shakeri says. “A professional could probably have finished the EP in a week while it took me over a year. But I’m happy it’s done. It was the official launch of Cherub Tree.”
Shakeri and Dascoulias are also quite proud of their latest song, “not yours, never was.” The single is meant for people who don’t like being controlled and is about not bowing down to people who try to keep you in a cage. “Whether it’s work, politics, or just life, I feel like there’s always somebody who thinks they know better than you,” Dascoulias says. “They think they know what we should be doing with our lives and how we should behave. This song is kind of a big F-U.”
One of the influencing factors behind “not yours, never was” was the Supreme Court’s June 2022 ruling on Roe v. Wade, revoking Americans’ constitutional right to an abortion. The court’s decision to exert control over people’s bodies was why Dascoulias thought about autonomy while writing the lyrics. “I was just so upset about it,” she says. “Healthcare is seemingly being ripped away from people who deserve it. I do think that, moving forward, some of our songs may have some more political edge to it … it’ll be subtle, but if you really listen then you’ll know what it’s trying to get at.”
Despite setbacks in health care and bodily autonomy, Shakeri and Dascoulias are feeling quite happy about what they’ve been able to accomplish as Cherub Tree. In just a year, they managed to transition from two inexperienced music enthusiasts to a band now considering the possibility of going on a tour.
“I’m so proud of us,” Dascoulias says. “The idea of joining or starting a band is one of those things you can be in your head about, but a lot of people won’t actually do it. My advice for people who want to is to just go out there and do it. It’ll be the most fun you’ll ever have.”
Cherub Tree perform with Soft and Dumb and Blunda at 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 17 at Quarry House Tavern. dice.fm. $13.