Growing up in Dallas, Alex Montenegro [better known by “Skirts”] was surrounded by music, citing distinct memories of her father teaching her how to place a needle on a record he was willing to sacrifice. Montenegro began to shape her own taste whilst working at record stores and discovering the burgeoning indie rock communities in Texas. After the release of Almost Touching, an EP of tracks home-recorded on a cassette 4-track, Montenegro took Skirts on the road, touring with the likes of LVL UP, Snail Mail, and Spencer Radcliffe (who lends vocals on delicate album closer “Annie”). Employing live bandmembers and friends Vincent Bui and Joshua Luttrull, Montenegro picked apart demos and made space for Great Big Wild Oak to grow.

The album’s craft is displayed in its open-minded approach, from xylophone to pedal steel, banjo to clarinet — the vast array of instruments never outshine one another... After building an underground fanbase throughout Texas, Skirts used Great Big Wild Oak to create the first developed portrait of the band’s signature sound. - Mallory Hawkins, DDW Records