New Kensington native brings her band Birthday Girl to Preserving Underground

Eva S. is looking forward to Tuesday night, when her band Birthday Girl will play at Preserving Underground in her hometown of New Kensington.

“It’ll be awesome, it’s my first time as this project playing in Pittsburgh so I think it’ll be fun,” she said.

The band has been showcasing their evolving style in music released this year. Members Eva S., Layla P., Vera May and Akiva H. have all worked together to craft, record and perfect songs at their own pace.

“I would say it took us a while to get into what is now our sound. At first, we were doing some more indie pop and more punk tracks, sort of like things that were a bit more straightforward,” said Layla P. “I think as we got to writing with each other, we understood each other’s creative process a little bit more and have been able to lean in together with … developing a whole process that the four of us do together.”

The band’s members cited a record store shelf’s worth of influences, from Sonic Youth and other “no wave” bands to the Breeders to the Talking Heads and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. They describe themselves as “eclectic.”

“I don’t think we box ourselves in. That’s what keeps things interesting,” said Layla P., whose basslines often serve as the foundational basis of Birthday Girl’s songs.

“I think what is in my DNA, what I’d I listen to when I was a little kid, is classic rock like Led Zeppelin and emo music from the 2000s,” Eva S. said.

“Honestly, I feel like Eva’s vocals are not like anything I’ve ever heard in my life. I want to say Hole — we all love Hole — but Eva is really on her own unique thing, in my opinion,” May said.

All of this is audible in Birthday Girl’s fuzzy, atmospheric, often high-energy music. Eva S.’s voice is impressively versatile; she can be breathy or harsh, expressive or ethereal.

They’ve released plenty of music this year, including the nine-track album “In This Unassuming Little House Only Good Things Can Happen.” It’s a brisk and complex 27-and-a-half minutes, including the dreamy single “Did you know I write you poems?”

“It’s good to get stuff out there. In today’s music economy, it’s definitely … increasingly difficult to keep up with the standards of constantly releasing music or constantly touring. I’ll say just making sure that everything is of an acceptable quality, I feel like we tend to sit on songs for a pretty long time. We want them to be good,” May said.

That includes three songs that they recorded in Eva S.’s family’s cabin in Kittanning earlier this year. “That was really fun and we were able to take our time with recording and rewriting some of the stuff. I think we’ve only put out one of those songs so far, even though we recorded them in January,” Layla P. said.

The band’s creative core has been together for about three years, and they’ve developed a collaborative process that’s helped them meld together their ideas into their innovative sound. “I think we’ve all been able to contribute and voice where we want a song or the project to go, and everyone’s very receptive to that. I think that’s how we’re able to make the sound we do now. Never discount someone’s thoughts or opinions and try everything and make sure everyone’s voice is heard so that everyone’s unique perspective is brought in,” said Layla P.

Birthday Girl will play Tuesday at Preserving Underground, a New Kensington venue and record shop. Tickets are $12-$15 for the show, and doors will open at 6 p.m. Get tickets here.