The Doubleclicks

History

Aubrey, the older sibling, and Laser grew up in Westford and Boston, Massachusetts, listening to the Smothers Brothers, "Weird Al" Yankovic, and Tom Lehrer. Their father, Stephen Webber, is a music professor at Berklee College of Music, and their mother, Susan Webber, is a fiber artist and former Spanish teacher. Both attended Abbot Elementary, where they first learned stringed instruments, and Westford Academy, with Aubrey graduating in 2003 and Laser in 2006.

They played in a high school rock band but did not plan to form a duo. Laser studied International Affairs at Lewis & Clark College, including a year at the Anglo-American University in 2008, while Aubrey studied classical cello at Berklee before both moved to Portland. Both siblings married between 2016 and 2017, leading to surname changes. In 2019, Laser came out as trans and nonbinary, initially using they/them pronouns, later identifying as a trans man and using he/him; Laser's marriage has ended.

The duo began performing at open mic nights, then booked a gig at Mississippi Pizza. Initially part-time, Laser worked as a freelance writer and journalist at the Beaverton Valley Times and Portland Mercury, while Aubrey was a home-care provider for seniors. They started a YouTube channel in 2011 with a six-month song-a-week project and have since toured the US, often performing at pop culture conventions, w00tstock, and venues like comic shops and game stores.

Music

Laser typically writes the lyrics while Aubrey creates the music. The Doubleclicks describe themselves as part of the nerd-folk genre, akin to geek rock and nerdcore but without drums or rapping. Their geek music involvement grew naturally; Laser stated in 2012 that they did not intend to write exclusively geeky music, and in 2014 noted that their songs use nerdy metaphors for feelings and experiences. They have toured with Molly Lewis, Danielle Ate the Sandwich, and Lucia Fasano, and have been featured performers on Jonathan Coulton's JoCo Cruise, with Coulton singing on a track of their 2017 album Love Problems.