This is my sixth time writing about Rob Moss and Skin-Tight Skin's split single series. This series is one of the most interesting and enjoyable musical endeavors I've had the pleasure of following in recent years. Out today is the latest installment, which finds Moss collaborating with 7 Door Sedan, the Silver Spring, Maryland–based trio featuring singer/guitarist Glenn Kowalski from legendary D.C. punk band White Boy.
As always, the format is that the two bands cover each other. I think what I like most about this series is that nobody ever settles for a straight "faithful" cover. In his vision for what these splits ought to be, Moss really seems to encourage creative interpretations of the selected songs. And we need more of that in today's music, when cover songs are too often dismissed as filler. There's real artistic value in taking someone else's song and making it your own.
On this release, Moss, joined by Tom McNally and Steve Naff, adds a new wrinkle to that concept. He covers not one but two songs by 7 Door Sedan: the opening and closing numbers off the band's 2008 LP Killer Good. Remarkably, Moss and Skin-Tight Skin combine "Everything in The World" and "Cement Man" so seamlessly that you might not even realize these were two separate songs. As a single track, "Everything in The World/Cement Man" is not just a creative reworking of the original songs. It's also a little bit of a different sound for Moss: less sneering '70s punk and glam and more of a moody post-punk slow burn. Moss really shows his talents as a pure singer here, and I love his rather eerie guitar work.
On its side of the digital wax, 7 Door Sedan goes big and takes on one of Moss's signature songs: "I'm On a Rocket Ship (Heading My Way Back Home)" from the album Now With More Rockets. As you would expect from 7 Door Sedan, the T. Rex vibes loom large. Kowalski played lead guitar on the original version, so he came to this song with a unique perspective. But he and his bandmates Josh Singer and Norman van der Sluys definitely transform the song here, trading the intergalactic anthemic feel of the original for a grittier, slightly Stones-ish approach. And I'm left feeling the way I don't feel enough when I hear covers: more appreciative of the original than ever but also blown away by the new rendition.
What really hits me about all these Rob Moss and Skin-Tight Skin splits is that the two bands involved are never merely just friends — they're also huge fans of each other's music. You can sense the love for the source material and admire the effort made to do something genuinely transformative as a tribute. This latest installment involves two immensely significant figures in the history of D.C. punk rock. And the point is that neither is resting on any laurels. Moss and Kowalski are out there making vital and exciting music, and it ought to be heard.
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