Mother Mother @ NXNE 2007

The Boat

Toronto, ON

on Jun 7 2007

Caitlin Hotchkiss (CHARTattack)

06/08/2007 10:30am

Background/Composition: They're three guys, two girls and a whole lot of harmonies.

Grade: 85

Comment: Quirky, rocking and all over the map, the hipsters ate this shit up -- even with the decidely un-hipster influence of the showcase sponsor, good ol' MySpace.

Achievement of Rock 'n' Roll Expectations
80-100: Exceeds skill and knowledge expectations, i.e. rocked us so hard we peed our pants.
70-79: Achieves required skills and knowledge. Meets rock 'n' roll standard.
60-69: Demonstrates some skills. Approaches rock 'n' roll standard.
50-59: Demonstrates some required skills and knowledge in a limited way.
00-50: Has not demonstrated required skills or knowledge.

Learning Skills: E=Excellent, G=Good, S=Satisfactory, N=Sad Really

Oral And Visual Communication
Eye Contact: S
Pronounciation: E
Stage Presence: S
Stage Banter: S
Image: G
Appearance: G
Use Of Stage: S

Strengths/Weaknesses/NextStep: The quintet of Mother Mother stayed mostly stationary through their rollicking set, content to get heads nodding across the small - yet packed - room of The Boat. Stage banter was also kept minimal, with a few gracious words put in as an afterthought in between boogieing. Besides, with two dueling female vocalists plus a male guitarist-singer, there was a lot more connecting with each other than the audience on a whole, but MM needed it in order to stay as insanely tight as they were.

Musical Analysis
Level Of Participation: E
Problem Solving: S
Teamwork: E
Work Habits: G
Organization: G
Audience Participation: G
Sound: E
Composition: E
Songs: G

Strengths/Weaknesses/NextStep: The harmonies between the two (and often three) vocalists is one of the band's selling points, and damn if they don't pull it off so well that it sounded like a polished recording at times. The jolting jerkiness of their ADD-ish melodies won't sit well with everybody, but when a band can move swiftly from acoustic folk-rock to country-punk to something like cabaret blues-pop, then there's still probably something for everyone.

Other Skills And Areas Of Interest
Charisma: E
Problem Solving: S 
Teamwork: E
Sexiness: G
Haircut: G
Indie Rock Footwear: G
Nods To Disposible Fashion: G
Cool Equipment: S
Level Of Inebriation: G
Actual Ability: G

Strengths/Weaknesses/NextStep: Songs about makeup and lingerie sung by a dude along with two girls? Definitely fun. They may have given off an unshakeable air of twee-ness, but no sooner did I write "twee?" in my notebook than Mother Mother started into some Kings Of Leon-style riotous cowboy boogie, proving that you can't nail down this band's sound. Just like their album cover shows: Five-headed cock, indeed!