Coomes is probably best known as half of the long running underground pop duo Quasi, the other half being Janet Weiss, herself better known as the drummer for Sleater-Kinney. Together they have released nine albums over the last two decades and toured all over the world. Concurrently, Sam Coomes has played and recorded with the likes of Built to Spill, Elliott Smith and Jandek, worked as a producer and scored numerous soundtracks for underground films and art installations.