Local Pop's Gossip Girls: The Sweater Set

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SUMMER'S OVER, AND the girls of The Sweater Set tell it like it is. "You're just for fun," read the lyrics of the whimsical folk duo's song "Roger That." "Don't you know, I only want you for the summer months."

D.C. natives Maureen Andary and Sara Curtin make up the folk band that has its roots in the choir kids at upper Northwest's Blessed Sacrament Church. Years later they sang together in church, Andary was a finalist in an international songwriting contest and was allowed to perform with another musician onstage.

"I just thought, 'Who can sing these things I write?' The only person I could think of was Sara."

The two quickly reconnected and established a sound that they describe as "musically elaborate gossip."

"It's like a coffee talk or a tease session," says Curtin. "Like, 'My outfit's cuter than your girlfriend's.' We also bring it down to an emotional side, but we have a sense of humor and it's reflective in those songs."

The multifaceted musicians have a long list of instrumentation to accompany their melodies. Along with folk staples ukulele, guitar and flute, Andary and Curtin play glockenspiel, kazoo and hand percussion along with a spot-on mouth trumpet that comes out even in the pair's more earnest songs.

"Cheap tricks are amazing and fun for the audience," says Andary, "I like the serious contrast in those songs." The Sweater Set's debut album, "Surprise Visit," weaves through personal narratives as if Curtin and Andary are whispering juicy tidbits in your ear. But don't let the vintage-clad gossping girls fool you — their songs are tales of self-governing women.

"I think it's reflective of our generation's tendency to have relationships in the gray area," says Andary. They're already working on newer songs, adding more unconventional instrumentation to their act. "We got a banjo-uke," says Curtin. "It's the most adorable instrument you're going to see."

» Solly's U Street Tavern, 1942 11 St. NW; with Michael Jantz and the Davenports, Thu., Sept. 10, 8 p.m., $5 (U St.-Cardozo)

Written by Express contributor Robyn Mincher
Photo by J.D. Edwards