Balls to subtlety. Sometimes all you need are huge classic rock riffs and lyrics about booze, bikes, babes and bad behaviour. Mothership uphold those ageless values on their debut while cleverly forging unmistakable sonic links with stoner rock and doom.
The opening pairing of Hallucination and Cosmic Rain showcases a band that owe a great deal to Kyuss, albeit without the trademark soporific desert haze, but as Mothership progresses it becomes obvious that this trio have more primal creative aims. The muscular thrust of City Nights is a balls-out biker rock anthem, propelled along by whisky-sodden Texas swagger. It morphs into the thudding badass boogie of Angel Of Death wherein guitarist Kelley Juett demonstrates his deft mastery of heavy rock’s fundamentals, letting rip with fiery lead breaks.
There are a few cosmic touches here and there that lift Mothership above the general morass of hairy Motörhead-loving bastards out there, but it’s that electrifying core of unpretentious hard rock that makes this such a loud, proud and groove-driven joy.
