Modern Woman — the London art-rock band fronted by primary songwriter Sophie Harris — announce their debut album, Johnny’s Dreamworld, out May 1st via their new label One Little Independent Records, and release the lead single/video, “Dashboard Mary.” Johnny’s Dreamworld represents the culmination of Modern Woman’s journey from Harris’ early, intimate songwriting project into a full-bodied band capable of folding post-punk, avant-garde, and folk traditions into a live force of dynamic originality. At its heart, the record explores the strange poetry buried within the ordinary. Harris’ lyrics, steeped in literary detail and filmic atmosphere, draw from a fascination with the dark underbelly of the everyday and the contradictions of womanhood.
Harris explains, “A vital theme I’ve always wanted in Modern Woman is the idea of conflicting things, of the tender/harsh, loud/quiet and scrappy/polished. The style of everybody’s playing, drawing from a melting pot of influences, coming together to form something new.” This interplay defines the album’s sound, delicate one moment, raw and untamed the next. Layers of violin and saxophone stretch across a foundation of propulsive drums and bass, creating something equally methodical and volatile. Harris’ lyrics remain rooted in the female experience; “I find it interesting to explore the rawer side of femininity that is often hidden; girlhood relationships and the complexities of female fixation and obsession.”
Modern Woman’s sound emerged from years of creative refinement. The band coalesced when Harris met violinist and composer David Denyer, who brought a background in experimental composition and textural sound work. Joined by Juan Brint-Gutiérrez on bass and saxophone and Adam Blackhurst on drums, the group forged a style that values the contrasting harsh edges of folk lyricism and noise that collides with melody. Working with producer Joel Burton (Naima Bock, Katy J Pearson, Vanishing Twin), they found a live immediacy that channels the raw intensity of their performances into a sound that is both rich and unpredictable.
Johnny’s Dreamworld is a tender but confrontational collage of shifting tones and perspectives, of dream logic, fantasy, and lived experiences, as on today’s single, “Dashboard Mary.” Guided by Harris’ voice—expressive, incantatory, and shaped by a long-standing admiration for vocalists like Björk, Sinéad O’Connor and Cat Power—the track captures the comedown following a feeling of escape, a gradually unfolding narrative that builds towards a rapturous climax. “This is a song that I wanted to write like a film. I wanted to confront the feeling of the ‘morning after’ and the decisions made during that time of exhilaration the night before,” Harris comments.
Since their formation in London, Modern Woman have built a reputation for performances that blur the boundary between poetry and noise, commanding stages at End of the Road, Latitude, The Great Escape, and Green Man. Harris, a literature graduate, writes with a novelist’s precision and a performer’s urgency, while Denyer, Brint-Gutiérrez and Blackhurst bring the intensity of modern composition, jazz and punk backgrounds to the table. This year they signed to One Little Independent Records, the home of Björk, Crass, Laura Misch, Penelope Trappes, and more.
Johnny’s Dreamworld cements Modern Woman as one of the UK’s most distinctive new voices, a band intelligently and purposefully exploring the relationship between beauty and brutality.
Modern Woman Tour Dates*:
Mon. Jan. 19 – Vienna, AT @ Arena Wien
Tue. Jan. 20 – Graz, AT @ Dom Im Berg
Wed. Jan. 21- Linz, AT @ Posthof
Thu. Jan. 22 – Munich, DE @ Technikum
Sat. Jan. 24 – Prague, CZ @ Cargo Gallery
Sun. Jan. 25 – Berlin, DE @ Columbia Theater
Mon. Jan. 26 – Hamburg, Knust, DE @ Molotow
Tue. Jan. 27 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Tollhuisten
Wed. Jan. 28 – Antwerp, BE @ Trix Club
Thu. Jan. 29 – Paris, FR @ Le Cabaret Sauvage
Sun. Feb. 1 – Glasgow, UK @ The Art School
Mon. Feb. 2 – Manchester, UK @ New Century Hall
Tue. Feb. 3 – Bristol, UK @ Electric Bristol
Wed. Feb. 4 – London, UK @ O2 Forum Kentish Town
* all dates supporting Ezra Furman
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[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR.]
