The Canadian five-piece brought old hits, viral riffs, and a very enthusiastic lighting tech to their sold-out show in Kentish Town.
The last time Mother Mother played in London, it was 2019. They were in the 100 Club: an intimate, 350 cap venue tucked down the side of Oxford Street. Fast forward to now, and they’re playing the first of two sold-out nights at the O2 Forum. A crowd of devoted fans - many younger than the band itself - are screaming the lyrics back to them and hanging on their every word.
Like a lot of bands, Mother Mother’s break came with the advent of TikTok, where the opening bars of ‘Hayloft’ were used to talk about gender identity. “We need you to know,” frontman Ryan shouts tonight, “that here at this show you’re allowed to be yourself. You’re allowed to love how you wanna love, and you’re allowed to identify how you want to identify.” That their career was skyrocketed by Gen Z queer kids has evidently not been taken for granted. ‘Body’ is dedicated to the fans who gave it new meaning, while ‘It’s Alright’ comes after a lengthy speech about mental health. “We go through the shit that we go through for nights like this,” Ryan says, “you know? And we acknowledge that there’s a lot of people here; there’s a lot of different lives here, there’s a lot of different stories here. And everybody here, they’re the main character in their movie. And we don’t know where everybody’s at. We don’t know what the person next to us is going through. They might be in that very very difficult part of the movie. And if that’s the case, we wanna say to those people: hey, bravo for getting out of the house despite not feeling good - that takes courage!” The crowd bellows their support. “You’re with your family now,” Ryan adds. “And we say keep pushing, keep fighting, keep living. Because we need you.”
Beyond the sentimental, Mother Mother shows are also just a lot of fun. Leaping between platforms, the band sear through favourites like ‘Back In School’, ‘Burning Pile’ and ‘Problems’, while a cover of Radiohead’s ‘Creep’ sees Molly take charge on vocals. Later, an acoustic break offers a period of relative calm, building the energy for the main event: ‘Girls Alone’ sandwiched between ‘Hayloft’ and ‘Hayloft II’. Extending for what feels like twenty minutes, the medley takes on something of an epic poem - never once losing grip of its audience as Ryan alternates vocals with Jasmin and Molly. If you weren’t sold on Mother Mother before you came, by the time they return for their encore ‘Ghosting’ there’s little option but to stan.
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