Playful as a puppy but smart as a whip, New Brunswick, Canada’s MOTHERHOOD has a knack for packing deeply conceptual art rock into a delightfully unpretentious package. Equal parts complex and unpredictable, the trio has assembled a bold body of work that blends the ferocity of punk, the finesse of surf, and the raw energy of garage into something riffy, rhythmic, and categorically ‘other’.
Oft-described as “Evil Beach Boys”, Motherhood’s live show is as intense as it is endearing, with chemistry borne of a longstanding best-friends-first mentality. The Fredericton-via-Belleisle Bay trio oozes small-town charm, their rural roots showing in the hillbilly colloquialisms that have become their signature style.
Their forthcoming full-length, Thunder Perfect Mind, narrates the sudden abduction of an unsuspecting pedestrian by a “dark, expanding Cloud”. To eclipse what controls, the only way out is through. But what lies beyond the Cloud?
“Despite it being a concept album that’s basically a sci-fi novel, it’s the most approachable album we’ve ever made.” Laughs multi-instrumentalist Penny, while guitarist Brydon Crain adds, “We see what people respond to at our shows and we wanted to give them songs they’ll love.”
Influenced as much by Bad Brains as Ennio Morricone, Motherhood happily march to the beat of their own maniacal drum. Indeed, it’s a tall order: presenting an 11-track concept album in the era of algorithmic, single-driven listening. But from punk ripper Bok Globule to pop pleaser Wandering, Motherhood masterfully delivers catchy one-hitters that give no air of codependency; like a Magic Eye, the bigger picture appears only if you care to search.
Motherhood’s genius lies in their ability to set deep thoughts to rippin’ riffs, Trojan horsing their serpentine songwriting under the guise of rock n’ roll.
