It wasn’t until Alex Montenegro took her solo project Skirts on the road that she cracked the code of the music. On the debut Skirts album Great Big Wild Oak, Montenegro employed her touring band members to help pick apart her solo demos and give the project some space to grow and blossom. The resulting album is ten tracks of contemporary folk with a Southwestern twinge, with lyrics and arrangements that paint detailed sonic illustrations of Montenegro’s memories.
To celebrate the new album, Montenegro sat down to talk Joanna Newsom, being constantly inspired by new music, and radio flipping habits in the latest Indie Mixtape 20 Q&A.
What are four words you would use to describe your music?
Dreamy, Open, Soft, Rockin’.
It’s 2050 and the world hasn’t ended and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?
I hope that people have connected some of those songs to some of their memories and that they can look back in time, while holding the record in their hand and have it just be a part of that memory the same way I sometimes look back at my records. That would be cool.
What’s your favorite city in the world to perform?
You can never beat the love you feel at home!
Who’s the person who has most inspired your work, and why?
I worked in a record store for years and was constantly listening to new things and I feel that had a big influence on it’s own, constantly listening to new things and revisiting old things. Listening to “classic albums” that I never took the time to listen to before. There were many albums that made me feel “I want to write a song like that.” When I found out about Alex G I remember falling down a rabbit hole (as most do) and feeling incredibly inspired but I also have to give a shout to some all time favorites Rachel Levy, Joanna Newsom, Mr Justin Vernon, and Mr Sufjan Stevens.
Where did you eat the best meal of your life?
I’m not sure if I can remember the best meal, right now I’m craving a sandwich from a place in Dallas called Latin Deli so I guess that for now.
What album do you know every word to?
Lexie – Record Time!
What was the best concert you’ve ever attended?
Coldplay in 2009 because It was one of my first and I instantly fell in love with the experience and still remember it so many years later. That or Joanna Newsom with Robin Pecknold at the Orpheum in 2016 because I brought her flowers and threw them from the crowd and she caught them and someone caught it on video.
What is the best outfit for performing and why?
Haven’t figured it out yet, but I will let you know.
Who’s your favorite person to follow on Twitter and/or Instagram?
No one because they both are anxiety inducing.
What’s your most frequently played song in the van on tour?
Probably “Wild Horses” by The Rolling Stones or “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” by The Band.
What’s the last thing you Googled?
“Coldplay superpages center”
What album makes for the perfect gift?
It depends on the person, I have a lot of experience with this after working in a record store. I don’t think there is one universally good album that works for everyone and if there is I haven’t found it yet
Where’s the weirdest place you’ve ever crashed while on tour?
I guess the upstairs of a music/synth/pedal shop? I can’t remember exactly what it was but that was more cool than it was weird!
What’s the story behind your first or favorite tattoo?
I am tattooless.
What artists keep you from flipping the channel on the radio?
Nothing stops me from flipping the channel and that annoys many people that have sat in the car with me while I’m driving.
What’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for you?
I can’t pick a specific thing to mention, but I am very fortunate to have very sweet friends that are always doing extra nice things.
What’s one piece of advice you’d go back in time to give to your 18-year-old self?
“If you’re feeling sad be productive in some way and you will feel better”
What’s the last show you went to?
Joanna Newsom in Austin right before the pandemic got bad. I sat behind Andy Samberg and also unfortunately had a migraine.
What movie can you not resist watching when it’s on TV?
I’m not sure if I have one, I more likely to stop at a crappy TV show like the Real Housewives or something along those lines.
What would you cook if Obama were coming to your house for dinner?
Oatmeal with “raisins” but the raisins are actually june bugs.
Great Big Wild Oak is out now on Double Double Whammy. Listen here.
