The Mommyheads - One Eyed Band

 

I think many of you know that The Mommyheads have been with me forever. Those that don't, well they have. I think many of us have bands like this. Ones that are still around and continue to produce consistent quality. Ex Norwegian and Sparks are others for me. The latter dates me most as Propaganda was the first album that I bought under my own steam, 50 years ago.

I saw a review of the album recently that described them as Indie Pop. I can just imagine the faces of the young girls when they played a song from the album. They've also been lumped in with the likes of Radiohead, which is more apt, but not really accurate any more.

However, the magnificent Life Is A Dream is much poppier instrumentally than you might expect. With its 70s Disco feel and that ace Club 57 string arrangement and Brass. Yet it still sounds incredibly Mommyheads tempo wise.

Indeed, the band's continual need to develop shows here in little ways. More instruments, more keys, but that start a vibe and take it wherever it goes still applies. Cerebral to the extreme, there is no band like them and here the slight additions make me love them even more.

I could never imagine The Mommyheads doing a multi vocal arrangement, yet they do so on Season Of Our Sound. But there are also trademarks present. Architect does sound a little like Genius Killer 2, although no song ever could better that particular ditty.

For all their technical brilliance, Adam Elk can also deliver an incredibly effective fragile vocal that just melts you. Here, it is on Human Being and which other band could mix Prog with Calypso? Well listen to Risk It All and note that they succeed.

Weightless And Unbound gets surprisingly close to a ballad and Junk gets all Jazzy. None of their albums ever hit you first time. But by the second or third listen, you are hooked. It may show, but The Mommyheads are my favourite band in the whole wide world.

I know many of you trust my judgement, so Mommyhead virgins can grab it at Name Your Price. Incidentally, the band's debut album, Acorn, has just been reissued 35 years on. So you can compare and contrast the development. That is also available at Name Your Price here.

You can listen to and buy the album here at Name Your Price. It is also available to buy on Vinyl and CD.

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