They resurrected “Country Sky” from the album to lead off the EP, both because it’s such a great song and Jeff Saltzman (Stephen Malkmus, Dolorean, Menomena) stepped in to mix the EP, giving the band the chance to take another approach with the tune.
“Country Sky” means a lot to Amaker, as it’s deeply reflective of who he is. “I’ve lived on the West Coast for nearly two decades. But I grew up in Oklahoma where the dirt is red and the sky goes on forever. The track “Country Sky” represents a lot of that. I’ve found myself living in two worlds in this life. One that is modern and full of innovation and another that looks back on survival driven truth. You can find that truth in stories of the wild west. You can find it in death. And when you get away from hectic things long enough, you can hear it in a song, or see it in the sky.”
Redoing the song was also a chance for Amaker to make a video. “We filmed the video for this song in Seattle. The bar scene was shot in a Japanese restaurant called Bush Garden. It’s a legitimately great place for Karaoke, and here you can find me singing Karaoke to my own song. The rollerblading scene is proof that I survived the ’80s and still remember a few things from that era. My favorite segment is the one where I’m holding my dog Frida at the beach. I love Frida. I want her to be in more of the next video.”