Mother Mother is a band with a varied history of styles, some successes and some failures. No Culture, while experimental, works. However, I’ve always been hesitant when I hear Mother Mother has released new music. In their 10 years of work, they’ve had their ups and downs. It seems to me that with each LP they put out, the more they tweak their sound. For the most part, this is a good tactic, but the downside to that is that a listener may like one era of Mother Mother, and hate another. With that being said, their discography is made up of 6 albums and a couple EP’s so there is much to pick from.
Regardless, No Culture is their sixth installment, and it has a lot to offer. Mother Mother has adapted once again, and in doing so have combined an array of musical elements to bring together an album that has a brilliant flow of sound. As I was listening, I was constantly surprised at the approach they chose to take, bringing in some softer sounds but also keeping their larger rock influences. It mixes folk-rock with slight 80s influences. It’s a strange combination but they are able to release a standout performance.
A couple of my favorite tracks include “The Drugs” and “Everything is Happening.” Both convey different types of emotions. “The Drugs” is one of their first released singles from the album and stays a bit high-energy throughout and is markedly a story of love in the face of past desires. It’s a bit cliche but well-executed and has irresistible replay value. “Everything Is Happening,” on the other hand, is softer and relies more heavily on synthesizer. It may be overlooked by some other heavier tunes on the album, but deserves recognition as pretty good track.
Overall, I was thoroughly impressed with Mother Mother’s album and their ability to craft an immersive and unexpected sound. In doing so, they’ve raised my expectations for them in the years to come.
Recommended If You Like: The Zolas, Metric, Tokyo Police Club
Recommended Tracks: 3 (The Drugs), 5 (Letter), 8 (No Culture), 9 (Everything is Happening)
Do Not Play: 10 (Family)
Written by Savannah Adams on 02/26/2017