Mother’s Children – See the other guy EP

Description

Any mention of gritty garage pop from Ottawa automatically conjures comparisons to The White Wires. Filling those shoes is like filling one of the Great Lakes, but if you dig bedrock powerpop, Mother’s Children are a solid bet. Hook heavy with tinges of glitter, the band renders the rhythmic pull of the late 70s with enough backbone to bring it home. The Canadian band doesn’t have many frills, but there’s plenty of fiber, as both the a and b-sides are straightforward slices of unpretentious, working-class dive rock. ”See the Other Guy” has some pep with an anthemic guitar line, but is a tad bit monotonous for its own good. It lacks the charisma that bands like Mickey and Crusaders of Love hurl across the table, floating around the generic tendencies of mid 90s pop punk. The song isn’t entirely lukewarm, it just doesnÕt grab you in all the right places. On the other hand, Dont Go Too Far grants the kids a pardon, dialing down on some serious Peter Case goodness. Contagious from start to finish, the vocals coil around the backing track and squeeze out a catchiness fit for an inevitable remake of Valley Girl. MotherÕs Children aren’t reinventing the wheel here, but few are. So why not spin it?