"[2] Czaplinski has compared them to Polyphonic Spree "Awesome" began as a cabaret act thrown together by seven experienced fringe theater actors.
[3] Around October 2003, several future members of "Awesome" played together in a They Might Be Giants tribute to raise money for Seattle's Open Circle Theater.
[4] Brendan Kiley of Seattle weekly The Stranger described that performance over a decade later and how a "privately-skeptical-but-here-to-be-supportive" audience were soon in "a state of shock" from how good the songs were, "sophisticatedly crisp and architectural while staying warm and invitingly poppy.
[3] Gigs as a band included performing on bills with Harvey Danger,[4][6] A. C. Newman,[4] U.S.E.,[4] The Presidents of the United States of America,[6] and The Long Winters.
For example, No Signal (2006) was described by Seattle Times reviewer Brangien Davis as "addressing, among other topics, technical difficulties, recurring dreams, cell death, regeneration and bees.