Search The Line of Best Fit
Search The Line of Best Fit

Household Name re-establishes Momma's vitality and extends their countercultural charge

"Household Name"

Release date: 01 July 2022
8/10
Momma household name art
27 June 2022, 09:00 Written by Christopher Hamilton-Peach
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Caught between the panged disillusionment of ‘90s grunge and its cohort of ‘00s alt-rock inheritors, Momma’s rising star can be linked to their instinct for splicing plaid-torn strings and vocal cues with conceptual angles and confessionally aligned lyrics; buried amongst chord sequences that could easily adorn the back catalogue of acts such as the Breeders, Veruca Salt and L7.

With Brooklyn-based Etta Friedman and Allegra Weingarten at the wheel, Aron Kobayashi Ritch’s production savvy would subsequently be enlisted – a collaboration that culminated in the ambitiously-themed second record Two of Me. Cast through the lens of formative LA origins as well as personal highs and lows, Household Name sets itself apart from Two of Me's emphasis on fictional snapshots and moral judgement – the Lucky Number-signed pair plying a more open insight into the intricacies of their own individual background and professional high jinks.

Momma continue to amalgamate nudging humour, sincerity and stylistic self-awareness in this respect. “Tall Home” blares with scuzzy Hüsker Dü-leaning riffs, cagey melodies anchoring tracks beneath a healthy layer of distortion, while “Speeding 72” navigates a highway-venturing vignette of a gig-initiated relationship, splintered with spontaneity and a sense of jaded recognition: “We’re faster getting nowhere / Baby we could go there / Shining on a secret avenue / Hear the burning rubber fanfare”. Emotions range between whirlwind exuberance and resignation to the temporal nature of it all, grounded in realism rather than faux sugar-coated pretence.

The itinerant venue-strewn lifestyle and vagaries of line-up changes find self-deprecating, near parodical reference on “Rockstar”, where Siamese Dream-era Smashing Pumpkins gets a mention; “Spider”, alternatively, weaves a metaphorical web set to turn of the century indie nods – persisting to the sunset-faded solo that crests “No Bite”.

Earning fans in the form of tastemaker-touted US touring partners Wet Leg, Momma in some ways negotiate similar waters to the Isle of Wight-hailing two-piece, upscaling familiar shades of previous decades with a generation-spanning commonality. Household Name re-establishes the pair’s vitality to this extent, avoiding a potential slump in extending the countercultural charge that cemented the appeal of their previous LP's.

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