THEY started out as a joke project - but Glasgow group Skinny Dipper look likely to have the last laugh.

The nine-piece outfit are drawn together from several other local bands and release thier debut EP Masks on September 8, offering up five tracks of melodic pop.

But the band was originally started by singer Alex Kenzel and guitarist Vicki Cole as some silliness.

"The whole band had started as a joke, a homage to Cameron Crowe movies and all our early songs were named after Almost Famous quotes," says Vicki, referring to the American director's 2000 film.

"The demos turned out really well, and we got some good feedback that encouraged us to find other people to play with.

"Most of the other members have then come through other bands that we play with, like Randolph's Leap and Blochestra.

"It's been like 'oh, she plays violin, we'll ask her to join."

Vicki herself plays in Randolph's Leap, the indie-pop act who've been doing well over the past couple of years.

With Skinny Dipper she's letting her own songs take centre-stage, and the tunes that make up Masks will be launched with a special gig at Stereo on Friday, September 12.

It's taken time for Vicki to become comfortable onstage, though.

"I've been writing songs for about 10 years but I've never had the confidence to perform them publicly because I don't really enjoy singing," adds Vicki, who lives near Charing Cross.

"It was meeting Alex and working with her, as she's got an incredible ear for harmony, that gave me the confidence to air the songs in public more.

"That was really what was behind the band."

Eight of the group's nine members are female, prompting them to jokily describe themselves as "almost a girl band".

It's a mixture of thoughtful Americana and powerful Scottish rock that have influenced Vicki's songs the most, though.

"We're all influenced by guys like Bright Eyes, that folk-tinged Americana," explains Vicki.

"Frightened Rabbit are a really big influence on me in terms of how I write vocal melodies and trying to make my lyrics more interesting.

"But there are common threads throughout our tastes, which is why it works so well."

Masks is being released through Scottish boutique label Olive Grove Records, and the band worked on it with producer Stuart MacLeod at his Beetroot Studios base.

And while some band can be dismissed as recording in the dark when their music's not up to scratch, for Skinny Dipper that was literally the case.

"I think he's done this quite a lot, but he got Alex to record her vocals in the dark, or at least in quite dim light," recalls Vicki.

"His approach was about getting people into the right headspace to perform - a lot of the time when you're recording in other studios it's about as recording as fast as possible, as you're paying for the time.

"With Stuart it's all about taking your time and getting as many takes as you need to feel comfortable with the recording."

And the group's own music might be taking a change or two in the future. While they're focused on launching Masks Vicki also has some ideas in mind for where to go next.

"It's moved away from sounding so folk," she says.

"A couple of songs on the EP sound very folky with a traditional flavour, but with the new ones we've written we've tried to do something that's more cold.

"Those older ones were very pretty - the latest one there's not a guitar on it at all, it's got lots of synths so that's a complete departure, with more ambience."

Which only leaves the mystery of the band's name …

"I think it was alcohol fuelled," laughs Vicki.

"We went out one night and the next day we had this name - I think it stemmed from a discussion about us all jumping into a loch naked for an album cover.

"That's not happened, which I'm quite relieved about."

Skinny Dipper, Stereo, Friday September 12, £6, 7pm