The Ascetic Junkies, a folk-pop band from Portland, will perform at the BellTower Tuesday, bringing their brand of psychedelic Americana to Pullman.

The four-person band consists of Matt Harmon singing and playing guitar, Kali Giaritta singing and playing piano, Cole Huskamp on Bass and Stephen Colvin on the drums.

The group started when Harmon and Giaritta met in Boston.

"We very quickly (became) best friends and we moved into a house together to play music," Giaritta said.

They started under the name The Ascetic Junkies, a nod to the paradoxical term used in a Jack Kerouac novel, but their music changed dramatically once they moved to Portland, Harmon said.

The duo met their two other current members in Portland and have been playing together since 2007.

The band formerly had a banjo player as well but he recently went to Argentina, Harmon said.

"We had a lot of the bluegrass and folk going into, what I would call, pop songs that we write," he said. "So that influence has taken a backseat."

He also said the group didn't want to attempt to replace the lost member because he was so unique and talented, and instead allowed their sound to change and stray away from having such a strong folk feel.

"Our recent tunes are more inspired by world folk music than Americana," Harmon said.

Despite this, he said he would still describe their most current work as more Americana-pop.

Harmon and Giaritta said their musical tastes are varied and quirky, including Tom Waits, Animal Collective and Vampire Weekend.

"We listen to a lot of different stuff," Harmon said. "A lot of electronic music. We listened to a lot of African, especially West African, music this last year."

In their free time, Giaritta said she likes to practice yoga and read, and Harmon likes to bike around Portland.

"I like being outside," he said. "When it's not raining."

Harmon and Giaritta said they hope the audience enjoys the show and their interactive style of performing.

"Our shows in Portland usually have a lot of audience participation," Giaritta said.

Giaritta said audience members can expect a fun night influenced by the band's positive outlook on life.

The Ascetic Junkies will perform at 8 p.m. on Tuesday in the BellTower. Tickets are $5 in advance and $7 at the door.

According to their website, the band has released three albums: a self-released indie folk album (One Shoe Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, 2008), a self-released pop EP (Don’t Wait for the Rescue Squad, 2009), and an Americana/rock album produced by Timber Carnival Records (This Cage Has No Bottom, 2010).

All of the albums can be obtained on the band's website, theasceticjunkies.com, or at Bandcamp.com.