AUGUSTA, GA – Ask Philip Brantley if he and his cohorts in Athens’ Modern Skirts are content with their general state of existence right now, and you’re not likely to get some sugar-coated, “It’s all about the music, man!” sort of answer.

It should come as no surprise that music, like anything worth creating, forces upon its human vessels a love affair akin to what went on between Shakespeare and his dark lady; she may be a raging bitch, but she’s a raging bitch worth writing several brilliant sonnets about.

“Honestly, no. Not even close,” Brantley, the bassist, guitarist and vocalist for the band, said. “The dream for me (and for the other guys — we talk about it often) will be if and when I’m able to quit my bulls*** part-time job and focus all my energy on music. Don’t get me wrong, I’m loving what I’m doing, but we’re all in our late 20s. We just want a legitimate career: something that will allow us to one day do things like start a family.”

The Modern Skirts, who, despite garnering nothing but positive reviews from publications like Pop Matters, SPIN and Under the Radar, not to mention carving out a small but loyal fan base, are still wallowing through the mire of a touring scene that seems at times to be nothing but downside.

“Touring hasn’t been as fruitful as we’d hoped when we started traveling four years ago,” Brantley said. “It has certainly helped us grow in some respects and our second record got out to a great deal of people, but touring is quite tough at our level.”

The last record, “All of Us in Our Night,” recalls everything from vintage Elton John(“Radio Breaks”) to folk collective Thorns’ warm acoustic rock (“Chanel”) to the wry seriousness of The National (“Mrs.”), and stands firm in the midst of other, more well-known, contemporaries without devolving into either pretentious meta-awareness or a grave egocentrism.

“When we write, we try to keep things interesting for ourselves,” he explained. “We certainly try to steer clear of too much complication. Personally, I don’t feel like I’ve ever done anything ambitious.”

Maybe it’s the arduous and relatively perk-free schedule that the Skirts have to maintain that fuels that attitude, but don’t mistake modesty for flippancy. One listen to “All of Us in

Our Night” is all you need to figure out that the guys have done their homework. Still, they’re fully aware that, if you have a band in Athens, it’s only a matter of time before you begin to be almost asinfluenced by other bands who are themselves only on their second or third album.

“I would say that our upcoming (third) record owes more to contemporary bands than our first two records,” Brantley said. “Some of the bands I’m really into and influenced by right now are Clinic, Animal Collective, Richard Swift and Super Furry Animals.”

In the end, though, Brantley tends to focus on the little victories.

“I feel fortunate that we’ve been able to stay together for 5-plus years.”

Modern Skirts w/ The Old Ceremony
Sky City
Friday, October 30
Doors, 8 p.m.; music, 10:30 p.m.
$6, advance; $8, day of show
modernskirts.com