New ground for Modern Skirts

Got an email the other day from the Modern Skirts as the band prepares to release an EP as a precursor to a full-length album set to drop in the fall. The Happy 81 EP is a “a statement of intent, a flag in the ground, claiming a new territory after a long journey” the band writes, and the subsequent song promoting the EP, Rebecca St. Claire, is a further example of this new territory.

The genesis of the new music comes from four-track cassette recordings out of the bedroom of singer Jay Gulley, and if Rebecca St. Claire is any indication, it is raw and grittily produced (which I guess that was the point). Ever since the sheen of the Skirts’ debut album Catalogue of Generous Men, the band has moved toward music not so clean. I can understand why people who love Catalogue aren’t enthused about the Skirts pushing away from its early sound, but you have to applaud the guys for wanting to try something new.

The band writes the new songs “were purely for enjoyment, never to be heard by anyone outside of the band. Eventually, the band realized that these recordings were bolder and more exciting than anything they had approached before.” They have tired of pop songs and seek to forge a different identity, which might be tough to achieve in Athens, but could work beyond the Classic City borders.

Anyway, here’s the new song. I’m not sure what to think yet, I get a sense it needs the other songs around it in order to make a proper evaluation. Sure, sounds like a cop out, but I want to hear more before deciding.

I’m sure the songs will be on display when the band headlines Friday night at AthFest.