Drawing together threads from Rolling Stones, AC/DC and Rory Gallagher, Connor Bracken and the Mother Leeds Band deliver a high-octane brand of blues rock that initially promises an engaging, if familiar ride. However, with a crystal-clear sound (courtesy of Dan Malsh and AJ Larson at Soundmine Recording Studios), the record opens on a high and only gets better from there, offering a series of highlights over the course of ten tracks, which never fail to get the adrenaline flowing.
The album kicks off with When The World Stops Turning, a taut rocker that sets the album’s pace and even borrows from Maiden’s Lightning Strikes Twice in the solo. The Stones assert themselves as a primary influence on the ramshackle Read On You, with its gang-vocal chorus and chiming guitars, although it’s an alternate-universe Stones with Rory Gallagher on vocals. That Gallagher influence persists, and is even amplified, on the addictive blues rock of Darkness, a track that builds beautifully over its five-minute run time. Guaranteed to be a live favourite at such time as such things return, it’s an album highlight. It also contrasts neatly with the lighter-touch Photographs Of Johnny Cash, which brings in sweet backing vocals and Mat Cob’s nimble bass for a fifties-style rocker that proves surprisingly refreshing. The first half concludes with Blame On Me, a lengthy piece that emerges with a twinkly riff, only to suddenly volte face and rock the listener to the core. It’s another album highlight and the point at which Connor Bracken and the Mother Leeds band really come into their own, Connor delivering an electrifying performance that is part blues musician, part manic street preacher, heaping fire and brimstone upon the passing public with mesmerising power.
Opening the album’s second side, Liquorstore is a glorious slab of bluesy pop with an addictive chorus, whilst Voice On The Radio conjures up the priapic ghost of Bon Scott, strutting from the speakers with a lascivious leer and some blistering lead work. It’s easy to imagine the band trading grins as the rhythm section (Rich Seyffart and Mat Cobb) lock, while Connor engages in some serious fx-pedal abuse, head down, sweat dripping to the floor. After such an explosive outing, the rather more sedate Nightbird allows some respite as the band roam the empty streets of their home town, evoking a sense of isolation that harks back to the days before social media and instant communication. Very much a track rendered in a classic mould, it’s easy to imagine the band peeling this out as an encore to a giddy and receptive crowd, and it certainly impresses in its recorded version. The track segues directly into the gospel-infused Dream Of You And Me, a track that captures the soulful rock vibe more perfectly in three-and-a-half minutes than Kings of Leon managed in an entire career, the crashing chords and rippling beat driving the piece at a considerable pace. The album concludes with Reprise, a delicate rag picked out on acoustic guitars. It proves the perfect closer to an album that consistently impresses over the course of forty-five short minutes.
At the outset, Nightbird Motel promises to be the work of A.N. Other classic rock band, but the listener is disabused of that notion just thirty seconds into the whip-crack riff of When The World Stops Turning. Whilst Connor Bracken and the Mother Leeds Band may not have reinvented the wheel, they sure as hell have perfected its spin on this crackling set that draws from a wide variety of influences and imbues them with a new set of gloriously timeless melodies. Time after time, the band hit you with a song that simply breaks into your consciousness and sets up camp there, and damn if you don’t find yourself singing along in the shower, the car and even walking down the road (you get some odd looks for that one, for sure). If you’re worried about the legacy of classic rock ‘n’ roll, give this album a spin – it’s in safe hands! 9/10
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