MammaBear: Hell Cat EP review

Hell Cat EP Tracklisting

 

When I’m writing a review I hesitate to compare one band to another- but then again, a comparison is a reference point that can make the difference as to whether or not the reader will be interested enough to actually listen to the band’s music. MammaBear sounds like English bands Oasis and T. Rex, and on occasion Kyle Gordon’s vocals remind me of Devendra Banhart. Some online research unearthed a connection between these musical acts. Banhart has also been compared to T. Rex; actually he’s been compared to Marc Bolan’s first, more folk-based incarnation of T. Rex; Tyrannosaurus Rex. I also discovered that Oasis has great respect for Banhart’s engineering work, to the point that they placed their album Dig Out Your Soul in his hands and gave him free rein to remix any tracks he chose.

While the above acts are merely bands that remind me of MammaBear, I also delved into their own personal influences. Perhaps the biggest influence on Kyle Gordon’s writing is English new-wave rock band XTC and the songwriting style of frontman/guitarist Andy Partridge. During a 30 year career, XTC managed to garner critical accolades and even a few hits, while still retaining their cult status.

Following July 2015’s The Strange Love EP comes MammaBear’s latest brilliant EP, Hell Cat, slated for release on February 15. This EP features 3 tracks: Hell Cat, Cruise Control and Wherever She’s There. As we’ve come to expect, this music is energetic, spellbinding and brilliantly written.

Track 1, Hell Cat, triggers happiness right off the bat with its joy and danceability. It features multiple vocal tracks that harmonize and a gorgeous keyboard solo followed by an equally gorgeous guitar solo. If you want an idea of how the keyboard sounds, imagine House of the Rising Sun by The Animals, but a lot more upbeat and playful. True to MammaBear form, this song deftly goes from loud to quiet, then back to loud. It comes as no surprise that the guitar hook is energetic and catchy as hell.

Track 2, Cruise Control, is my personal favorite. One of the reasons this song is so pleasing to the ear is its seamless transitions from chorus to verse. During the verses, a simple background of guitar strums and a stripped down drum and tambourine beat pull you into the song’s rhythm while also putting focus on the lyrics. These are unmistakably folk style lyrics, but with a rock sound and sensibility. The song has a wailing rock guitar hook, and the hand claps make you want to sing along.

What I first noticed about Cruise Control is its sophisticated lyrics. Smart and savvy, they show a deep understanding of the modern world and of history’s tendency to repeat itself, unless we learn from the mistakes of the past. Following in the footsteps of visionaries such as John Lennon, Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie, Kyle Gordon has written a dazzling anti-war song with a rock spirit and a call for peace: “let all be damned / let there be peace / I don’t mean far away / but here for you and me.”

There is a most excellent pause in the line “is it me or has the world gone_mad?” This tiny pause between the words “gone” and “mad” adds a great deal of passion and earnestness to the words, and makes the vocal delivery hit harder. Another iteration of this line features a sustained note on the word “mad,” which is also affecting. MammaBear is all about putting pauses in all the right places in their songs, in addition to their expert use of extreme dynamic shifts from loud to quiet.

The final track, Wherever She’s There, is a departure from the other songs on the Hell Cat EP. Whereas the first two tracks feature energetic loud/quiet shifts, there is none of that element here; Wherever She’s There is all quiet. Lulling, languid and smooth, this is by far the most chilled out song on the EP. The dreamy lyrics could be emanating from a tunnel. The layered vocal tracks give the impression of a lead vocalist accompanied by background singers. Something about these harmonizing vocal tracks bring to mind the overall vibe of Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys. Tambourine keeps a slow but steady beat. The acoustic guitar tracks have a jangly, almost country-western feel. The electric guitar tracks are laden with MammaBear’s signature lulling distortion, bending notes in the tradition of My Bloody Valentine and Cocteau Twins.

Yet again, MammaBear has delivered a stellar EP. We’re all speculating and hoping these EPs will coalesce into a full length album in the near future. I’m looking forward to hearing what they come up with next.