Aaron Hoghstrasser

Aaron Hoghstrasser is an American musician, best known for being the drummer and co-founder of the band *Brynnerd.* He was born in Philadelphia, and grew up in **Fox Chase**.

Aaron studied percussive instruments at the **Juilliard** school of music in Manhattan. This is where he met Tim Vanderweele, who he would later play together with.

Aaron is known for his perfectionist style of drumming, not allowing much room for improvisation but rather perfecting technique, especially for in-studio recordings. He studied at the Juilliard school from 2008 until 2010, ultimately finishing his Bachelor's degree in 2015. He has held several seminars on percussion at the NYU music institute, as well as at Berklee.

## Youth

Aaron was born the second-youngest sibling of four, having an older sister and a brother, next to a younger sister. His parents, Bret Hoghstasser and Evelyn Miller, are both Americans with German and English descent. His father is a High School maths teacher and his mother is a secretary. Growing up in *Fox Chace, Pennsylvania,* he had a calm and uneventful youth. His hobbies included soccer and track and field, being a very athletic child growing up. He was particulary close with his sister *Joan,* who was only two years older than him.

When Aaron was thirteen the family took owership over the grandparents house in the centre of Philadelphia who had passed away recently. They moved together to the Washington Square West neighborhood. He marked it as fundamental to who he became as a person. Aaron now attended the *Parkway Centre City Middle College* in the centre of the city. He wasn't a very good student, and would often skip class to pursue odd jobs. The school was a lot more 'worldlier' than his school in Fox Chase, and he took up classes in drumming and band practice. He worked as a waiter, cigarette salesman, and newspaper salesman. *"There wasn't any job I wouldn't take on. If there was money involved, and it was semi-legal, I would do it".*

He was described by students as very social but 'underdog-type', and was voted as *most likely to sleep through an earthquake.* He gave a part of the graduation speech to his year, together with the valedectorian.

When Aaron was thirteen, his brother Benjamin who was five years older than him decided to enlist in the Marines. The decision was met with backlash from his parents, who didn't want their son participating in a foreign war. Nonetheless, Benjamin would leave for his first round in Afganistan in 2005. During his first tour, Benjamin would die in the line of duty because of a Taliban sniper. He was buried with honor at the Arlington Cemetary. Aaron described his brother's death as the reason his family slowly started falling apart. *"It began with Benjamin's death. I was just fourteen, and I was outside in the yard with friends after school. When my mother received the call she let out the loudest scream I've ever heard coming out of her. I was too embarassed and shocked to go to school the next week. My parents would often forget about me from that point on... Their loss of Benjamin became their sole focus".*

Aaron's parents divorced in 2007, two years after their sons death. Aaron would move in with his mother, and attended the same high school and lived in the same house. He grew apart from his father, who moved back to his native Illnois. They would rarely see each other, before losing contact when Aaron started attending college. *"I don't know what it was exactly, but suddenly dad lost all interest in me. When I visited him in Urbana and told him I got in to Juilliard, he sighed and didn't even look at me. When I was in New York, he wouldn't bother to call me. He thought I chose the 'easy' path, compared to what his Benjamin had pursued. It was a huge struggle for me, coming to terms with what my father really thought of me".* They didn't speak from 2008, until 2013.

Aaron remained very close with his mother, and their relationship only grew stronger as he lived with her.

## College Years

In 2008, Aaron got into Juilliard for Percussion. It came as a shock to him, as he wasn't the best performer. He would attend the school, funded largely by his earnings saved up in High School. He would come back every two weeks to visit his mother in Philadelphia in his first year.

In New York Aaron quickly settled. He was known as a huge partier but brilliant drummer, and was asked by many student ensembles and Jazz bands organized by Juilliard Professors. He would get in trouble with the administration of the school often, as he skipped class regularly and didn't submit theoretical assignments on time. But secretly, he would practice at least 8 hours every day, often coming into studio drunk late at night after going out.

He met Tim Vanderweele in 2009 when he saw him performing at the Blue Note Jazz Club. Aaron was struck by Tim's controversial choice in repertoire, and they started talking often from that point on. They would sometimes play together, comparing technique and exchanging niche recordings Tim would discover. They had found musical equals within each other, and didn't see each other as competition (especially because they were in different year groups at the conservatory).

Aaron was quickly submerged in the New York music scene of that time. Because he is extremely social and would party almost every night, he had a huge network in the city and *"knew at least one person on every block".* He was connected to The Strokes, Interpol and Vampire Weekend quickly, being aquainted with the band members at after parties or behind the scenes at shows. Aaron was hired on-and-off as a 'tool geek' and equipment manager for the band, setting up stages and equipment for them.

## Personal Life

Aaron had a brother, *Benjamin Hoghstrasser,* who died as a marine in the war in Afganistan. He was hit by a Taliban sniper. Benjamin was buried with honor at the Arlington cemetary. Controversially, Aaron always stated that he didn't remember much of his brother as he had moved away as soon as Aaron *'gained consciousness'.* He has always stated that the aftermath, *the ghost,* of Ben caused him more distress than his actual death. He has written an LP dedicated to Ben called *Ask The Dust.*

Aaron has describes *Tim Vanderweele, Brynnerd E. Carter and Carter Willson* as his 'soulmates', noting their intense bond and friendship for life. "It feels painful if I don't see them all in a few days. It feels like we all came together at a quintesensial moment and bonded for life, without ever really thinking about it".

He has maintained close friendships with Kyle Mooney and Mac deMarco, among others. He is known for organising frequent social events, inviting musician, actor, entertainement industry friends to mingle. These parties or *'events'* have gained notority in the business, for being hard to get invited to.

Aaron briefly dated filmmaker Sofia Coppola in 2015 for two months. He was in a relationship with Warpaint singer and guitarist Jenny Lee Lindberg from 2017 to 2019.