The striking cover art for Johnny's Dreamworld, the debut album for London art-rock outfit Modern Woman, shows two girls fighting in a field, arms flailing, faces blurred.

Shot by photographer Sandra Ebert, it grew out of an idea from Modern Woman songwriter Sophie Harris, who saw the image —dreamlike, cinematic, suggesting a whole story— as playing into the vibe of the record, and the sentiment of the songs.

"What I tend to be interested in in Modern Woman, is the primal influences that lie beneath the surface, that are constantly pushed down," says Harris.

"I'm drawn, continually, to conflicts. So, darkness but also delicacy. Violence but then non-violence, and how those things, when they're put together, it creates this clash.”

"We've always been interested in music that shocks, and has dynamic shocks, interesting variation. Some bits can be a little bit experimental, but then other bits are a bit more traditonal song-like structures. It's always been interesting for us to throw them together."

Speaking on The International Pop Underground with Anthony Carew, Harris talks about Modern Woman's beginnings, their love of playing live, and the influence of cinema, poetry and PJ Harvey.

Feature image: Sandra Ebert