Remember the Schankman Twins? They were a festival favorite in the early part of the decade, traveling the US from their home in Los Angeles.
From the start,Dana and Lauren Shankman had an irresistible appeal; two cute young teens playing banjo and fiddle, singing bluegrass with a strong band. Their single, Waterbound (from their Duality CD), was a radio hit in 1999-2000 and they toured all over the world before dissolving their bluegrass group to form Malibu Storm in 2004. This was a country/pop act with a bluegrass flavor, which also featured their younger brother Michael on bass.
Malibu Storm got some traction with their self-titled Rounder album, and saw the single Photograph climb to #2 on the Billboard Country Singles chart. A video for the song also got airplay on CMT and GAC. Like so many promising young acts, things never took off for Malibu Storm, and the girls’ lives took the normal course of marriage and family.
But they are back, with a new band and a new album picking up on the bluegrass, country and rock vibe of Malibu Storm. They are working now as Dana and Lauren, and have just released a single from the upcoming CD.
Lauren shared a few words about their past few years away from music…
“Since Malibu Storm, we both got married, and I have two daughters now, Ella (she just turned 3) and Charlotte, who just turned 1. Dana has a 7 month old boy named Austin, and is pregnant with another one due in April. So we took a few years off to have our kids and we just went back in the studio a few months ago to record these songs. Our kids were in the studio dancing along, and they all love bluegrass music! :)”
Here’s a listen to the single.
Chasing Trains: [http://traffic.libsyn.com/thegrasscast/chasing_trains.mp3]
The album is expected to hit soon, but the single (along with 2 other tracks) is available now in iTunes. You can visit Dana and Lauren online, or connect with them on Facebook.
Welcome back, ladies!
