MOTHER MOTHER STRIKES A PERFECT STYLISTIC HYBRID ON NO CULTURE
Balancing Convention & Quirk
“ I DIDN ’ T ENJOY WRITING THIS MUSIC ,” admits a reflective Ryan Guldemond about the songs comprising No Culture , his band ’ s sixth and soon-to-drop studio album . And there are several reasons for that . “ It was painful and arduous ,” he continues , “ but by virtue of that it was also meaningful and crucial .”
The collection is the product of an overtly and intentionally cathartic process for the frontman and principal songwriter of quirky Vancouver indie pop quintet Mother Mother . That process involved holing up in a makeshift studio in the woods of the property where he and his sister and bandmate , Molly Guldemond , grew up , a yearlong refrain from his not-so-discreet self-medication , and subsequent bouts with depression and writer ’ s block ,
Whereas the band ’ s fourth full-length , 2012 ’ s The Sticks , conceptually explored themes of isolation and reclusiveness , No Culture finds the brother Guldemond actually living those themes to explore new ideas entirely – ones that are far more personal and introspective .
In an interview surrounding the release of The Sticks years ago , Ryan told the National Post that Mother Mother never embarked on a new album project with a preconceived idea of how it should sound ; that all of their output to that point was the result of “ following a good whim from an all-telling muse .” This time , it seems , he was forced to feverishly hunt that muse and strangle it into submission with his bare hands .
MOTHER MOTHER STRIKES A PERFECT STYLISTIC HYBRID ON NO CULTURE
WRITTEN BY ANDREW KING & PHOTOS BY RAINA + WILSON
34 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN