Squirt

The members of the alternative CCM band Squirt play a fairly typical amalgam of popular late-'90s alternative rock styles — Nirvana-esque post-grunge, punk-pop, a touch of ska — but it's not their sound that sets them apart, it's their extremely young age. At the time their debut album, Huge, was released in 1998, drummer and founding member Jordan Dickerson was only 11, while guitarist Chris Fewell (a replacement for original member Blake Kaiser) and bassist Matt Smith (also a replacement, for Torrey Burkum) were both 13. Dickerson's father, former Prince guitarist Dez Dickerson, runs the Absolute record label to which Squirt was signed; the two Dickersons conceived of the group as an opportunity to spread the gospel to young listeners more likely to identify with kids their own age. The band's first single, 1998's "Go!," was recorded with the original lineup of Dickerson, Burkum, and Kaiser; Fewell and Smith joined up in time to complete the recording of Huge.