Mother and the Addicts’ second LP, Science Fiction Illustrated, is set to make a big splash in the US via renowned Scottish label Chemikal Underground. Led by Sam Smith AKA “Mother”, MATA’s tantalizing hybrid of post-punk, Britpop, and new wave references greats like Jarvis Cocker and The Fall whilst retaining its own unique character.
“Fans of Pulp and Franz Ferdinand, meet your dream narcotic. FOUR STARS.”
Immediately parting company with convention, Science Fiction Illustrated opens with a psychodrama set in a Stromness bar. If its introduction is correct in promising a voyage into turbulent catharses, it gives little indication that they’re going to be served up on the dance floor. That’s exactly what happens though on this, the second offering from Glasgow’s Mother And The Addicts: a barrel load of neuroses and sly observations laden with dark humor, Science Fiction Illustrated navigates the squally waters of carnal politics, steered by a flurry of fluctuating musical styles. Disco, electronica, punk, rockabilly and krautrock are all represented here in one gloriously accomplished package, proving that you can exorcise your inner demons whilst exercising your hips and feet…
Sam Smith, the eponymous ‘matriarch’ and chief architect of Science Fiction Illustrated, reflects on the finished album and how it represents a quantum leap from their breathless, febrile debut of 2005, “Take The Lovers Home Tonight”…
“The first album was pieced together with sellotape and glue. This time around my writing was stronger, and I was determined that the ‘voice’ on ‘Science Fiction’ would be my own - not as schizophrenic as before, or as wilfully retro. It’s a more modern sounding record, more confident, and although it’s still got humour, it’s a good bit darker.”
It’s darker alright, and not surprisingly given that a lot of the songs for the album had been written and recorded while Sam seemed hell-bent on making life difficult for himself. Lyrics dealing with feelings of distraction and restlessness proved to be eerily prophetic when he found himself without a roof over his head and subject to a cavalcade of personal strife. Rootless, Sam sought solace in the recording process and began to ring the changes:
“I detached myself from the engineering side of things and focussed on playing; we finished the album in six weeks because Paul (Savage, Chemikal Underground & co-producer) moved it forward really quickly – there was no time for naval-gazing. This album needed to have a greater sense of continuity about it and it was decided that we would look beyond the stylistics of “oh, this is a dance song” and “oh, this one’s an indie song”. I’m a bit of a musical magpie, so this time round it was all about finding the ‘bigger picture’ – there’s a lot more clarity to this album and there’s certainly no doubt that the lyrics bear a greater relation to what was going on with me at the time.”
The ‘bigger picture’ on Science Fiction Illustrated comes in the form of a slickly assured genre-romp through the decades: the sashaying swagger of All In The Mind followed immediately by the 80’s electro-stomp of Watch the Lines; the Blondie-infused élan of “Are Others” morphing into the driving, Art Of Noise-esque mantra of “Yeah Next”; the airy pop of “So Tough” recalling the late, lamented, “Electric Sound Of Joy” contrasts starkly with the cavorting, post-punk salvo of “Attraction.” It’s breathlessly diverse but still markedly more focussed than their dementedly energetic debut, hurtling through a variety of musical references borne out of Sam’s determination to avoid playing it safe:
“We weren’t going to make an album that was conveniently similar to the previous one so I didn’t indulge in ‘comfort listening’ – for me, that’s Bowie/Roxy Music/Talking Heads. I soaked up music that was as diverse as possible: Deerhoof and Battles, The Drift by Scott Walker; I’d visit Chemikal’s office and listen to old vinyl like The Associates; at home I’d stick on old Rockabilly acetates, Magazine, Siouxsie And The Banshees…”
In the studio, the band sought to get the most out of a limited range of equipment: guitars, bass, drums and an old Yamaha CS5 – resulting in an album that’s resolutely modern whilst throwing affectionate nods and winks to the ghosts of classics past. It’s rooted in the type of music that offered an ‘eight-hour escape’ from the drudgery of the working week; that celebrated the lure of the dance floor, the soundtrack of a Saturday night. Mother And The Addicts are very much a throwback to all of those bands that were skilled at what they played and knew how to get a party started…
“The best music always recognises the clash between the sweet and the sour – disco always had its hangover. I’ve never managed to fully get the American ‘rawk’ thing and have always felt more drawn to the kind of acerbic intelligence you find in British and US post-punk bands, there’s also an affinity with reggae, soul, and disco - a lot of my family had been skin heads and soul boys when I was growing up and they introduced me to that type of thing.”
Mother And The Addicts’ gigs are remarkably, almost unfashionably, tight. The band tear into a set that recalls the spirit of so many bands it’s often hard to keep track: from the Violent Femmes to Blondie; Roxy Music to Thomas Dolby; James Brown to Dr Feelgood - if that sounds like a tough act to pull off, then that’s only because it is. The live show has been a long time in the making - Sam feeling that in the beginning, the band were maybe just too inexperienced, too fresh, to fully pull off what it was they were trying to do. Playing their first show only four weeks after the band had formed was always going to be a tall order but their concerts were always wildly enjoyable, barnstorming affairs. The feeling persisted though that they could achieve a whole lot more with the performances…
“We hadn’t quite worked out what we wanted to be yet; it takes a while to find your feet as a band and in the absence of any sort of experience, we turned to Dutch courage. There was definitely a point where people were getting too drunk to function - it was Glasgow ‘battle drinking’ - adventures in vans and hallucinogens on the M6.”
There’s no doubt that they’ve cracked it now though. Their recent performances evidence of a band that know they’ve made a great album and are revelling in their ability to crank things up even more on stage: What Were The Reasons, Carthage, Going Native – they all take on extra dimensions live while the songs from their debut album have started to pulsate and heave like long-lost club anthems…
“We’ve always enjoyed playing music, not just in front of an audience but in rehearsals: it’s the thrill of crafting songs, working out parts, arranging them; the challenge of making something sound great. Ultimately, we wanted to make an intelligent album that would reach as many people as possible – something you could hear on the radio or dance to in a club - just because you can dance to something, doesn’t mean it’s dumb.”
Mother And The Addicts are a cussedly independent bunch: by boldly sticking to their guns and appealing to their own musical sensibilities first, they’ve succeeded in making an album that is both effortlessly appealing and invigoratingly fresh. An emphatic lesson in how to take musical influences and create something vital, Science Fiction Illustrated barrels across decades of dance floors without ever losing sight of the here and now. Mother And The Addicts deal in delicious eccentricity and it’s their joyful lack of convention that should be lauded in a time of threadbare radio-fodder – just don’t confuse it with a lack of substance…
“It would be good for people to realise that there’s more to Mother And The Addicts than just an offbeat name. We’re not fucking idiots.”
If Science Fiction Illustrated does chart a turbulent journey, it’s through a perfect storm.
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