Stepping into The Factory in Chesterfield Saturday night, the place was full of mostly teens and some early 20-somethings to see Mother Mother and Winnekta Bowling League perform.
Mother Mother, who hails from British Columbia, have been around since 2005 but it wasn’t until 2020 that a new fan-base was born thanks to TikTok. However, Music n’ Other Drugs says it perfectly in this 2019 interview, “If you’re someone who likes infectious melodies steeped in subtext,” then Mother Mother is for you.
The crowd erupted in deafening cheers as soon as the 5-members of Mother Mother stepped onto the darkened stage to begin their dynamic, energetic, electric 90-minute choreographed set.
The band, consisting of Ryan Guldemond, lead vocals/guitar/bass, Molly Guldemond, vocals/keys, Jasmin Parkin, vocals/keys, Ali Siadat, drums, and Mike Young, bass, performed several from their February 2024 album, Grief Chapter, including “Nobody Escapes,” “Explode!” and “Grief Chapter.”
They perfectly melded The Pixies, “Where is my Mind,” into their song “The Matrix.” Ryan interacted with the crowd saying how great it was to see everyone and encouraged them to be themselves and thanked the fans for coming to the show.
To the delight of fans, they finally performed the sprechgesang, medium-tempoed, sometimes frenetic “Hayloft,” which is the song that spread like wildfire on TikTok and reinvigorated the band to keep moving forward.
L.A.-based Winnetka Bowling League, formed in 2018, opened the night on a stage full of gorgeous lighting with 40-minutes of the type of music you want blasting from your car radio on a summer’s day.
Early on, lead vocalist/guitarist Matthew Koma doubled down that this was their first-time performing in St. Louis, since “the first time was just before the pandemic and it doesn’t count.” But this concert photographer was at that show, which took place at Blueberry Hill’s Duck Room, not a Taco Bell as Koma joked.
The trio performed the dreamy “Come to the Beach,” the peppy, “Handsome,” and the song that put them on the map, “CVS,” amongst others.
Thank goodness the teen culture “discovered” Mother Mother and has put them on a trajectory for a wider audience to learn about because they are worth knowing. Adding Winnetka Bowling League to the tour made for a night full of fun, positive energy that seems to be in short supply these days.
Find the exclusive photos from the night here https://bit.ly/Mother2x24cz
Mother Mother setlist https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/mother-mother/2024/the-factory-chesterfield-mo-3ba824c8.html
Winnetka Bowling League setlist https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/winnetka-bowling-league/2024/the-factory-chesterfield-mo-23a824cb.html
In my work life, I help nonprofits and small businesses with media and public relations. In my what I love to do life, you can typically find me photographing either wild horses or concerts.
