The Hush Sound

Capricorn

What began as random jam sessions between friends Bob Morris (guitar) and Greta Salpeter (piano/guitar) eventually grew into the Chicago indie pop quartet the Hush Sound. A classically trained pianist since age three, Salpeter was introduced to Morris by mutual friends when they were in seventh and tenth grade, respectively. The two played together whenever free time would allow, and by winter 2004/2005 they had seriously begun writing songs. Originally called "the Hush" ("Sound" was added later upon discovering a rapper shared their name) the two ultimately decided to expand their acoustic duo to include drums and bass. Morris got in contact with friends from the local Chicago scene, Darren Wilson (drums) and Chris Faller (bass), who were both looking for a new band to play with. Wilson was onboard first, but it wasn't until watching a tape of the trio's first performance that Faller decided to join as well. Impressed by what he saw, Faller quit his other two bands and solidified the Hush Sound's lineup in February 2005.

The quartet (of which all members share vocal duties) hit the studio a month later to record their debut full-length, So Sudden. Self-releasing the record, the band initially sold 300 copies in only two nights, which helped build them a strong local following. Songs on their purevolume.com page next impressed Pete Wentz (bassist and de facto spokesman for Fall Out Boy), who signed the band to his Fueled by Ramen imprint, Decaydance, in July 2005. So Sudden was then re-released that October. Their sophomore effort, Like Vines, appeared in June 2006, expanding upon the band's sweetly melodic piano-tinkering pop and paving the way for tour dates alongside Panic! at the Disco. The Hush Sound retreated to North Hollywood at the end of 2007 to work on a third studio album, and Goodbye Blues arrived the following spring.