Northampton-based band Mum and Dad Talk to Animals offer up a delicious emo rock sound that they describe as “cathartic, raw and authentic.”
The band started out with best friends Daryl Humphries (drums) and Josh Mackridge (vocals and guitar) jamming together. They drafted in Josh’s brother Mike on guitar, who brought in his old university friend Jamie Cole on bass. Mike ended up moving to Australia, so they replaced him with their friend Dru Lintott, who had prior experience of being in bands.
And Josh said: “That’s how we ended up with today’s lineup, we’re all such great friends and I feel blessed to be in a band with such like-minded people. Each band member brings something different to the table. We always try to do something interesting when it comes to the instrumentals, and vocally, it’s pretty raw and honest in the lyrics.”
We chatted to the band around the release of their most recent single Somewhere (not here) in May. It starts out with a dreamy synth sound that drops into abrasive vocals over stabbing guitars, then a little guitar lick feeds into a catchy chorus. Another feisty verse follows, ending with a cool section of guitars setting up another chorus. That ends with intense screamed vocals over atmospheric guitars and rolling drums to bring the track to a powerful conclusion.
On the track, Josh told us: “So far so good! I’m not sure if it reached quite a widespread audience as our last release, but for the people who have been checking us out for a while feedback seems to be really good, which is the main thing. For anyone who hasn’t checked it out, they can expect a lot of energy from this track.”
That follows on from previous single Coat of Arms, which opens up with an engaging guitar riff before stabbing guitars lead into a repeating lick. High-pitched vocals take over, answered by a blast of guitars and leading into a big singalong chorus.
And that follows on from last year’s double single release Reverie & Irresponsibility. Reverie opens up with a cool riff that continues under shouty vocals then slows down and concludes with a delicious little stabbing guitar riff. And Irresponsibility starts out with rolling drums joined by guitars, which drop into intense vocals. The pace slows with a plodding guitar line and a piercing high note that tees up a lively but intense chorus. The track ends with a cool little stabbing guitar riff followed by lively guitars and drums under the intense vocals.
Mum and Dad Talk To Animals’ members listen to a wide variety of music, but have a common shared love for the midwest emo scene. And on what inspires them to write music, Josh told us: “It’s mainly personal experiences – times in life where you fucked up and reflecting on that to grow as a person, in a very roundabout way.”
Mum and Dad Talk To Animals recently played a gig supporting Crywank, which Josh described as “a fever dream,” and they should have plenty of gigs in the pipeline, so stay tuned for more soon.
You can follow Mum and Dad Talk To Animals on Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music and Amazon Music.
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