NO JOY - MOTHERHOOD
Rosie shares her thoughts on the latest No Joy release, Motherhood, and lets you know whether she thinks you should listen or not.
After not releasing a full length album in 5 years, No Joy returns with Motherhood. A perspective album through the eyes of her own mother, taking a step back and switching shoes. No Joy began over a decade ago as a series of emailed riffs and relied heavily on distorted electric guitars until ditching them all together in 2018 to release an electronic EP. Motherhood combines various elements together such as techno, grunge, and 80s disco like Garbage meets Japanese House.
With motherhood being the dominant theme throughout the album, lead single and opening track ‘Birthmark’ begins with soft synths and backing vocals to carry airy lyrics “be the one like when we were so young”. The melodies then build up with a fusion of percussion and electric guitar strums creating a complicated, noisy yet gentle. Much like a baby.
‘It’s a lot seeing myself through my mother’s experiences and the physicalness of a body getting older.’ With so much going on in our daily lives and keeping busy every single day it’s easy to forget that our parents are aging too. Holding a child and watching them grow after carrying them for so long is a rewarding, exhausting and loving experience we often take for granted. To listen to an album describing this process is just the tip off the ice-berg of what that experience is like and the complex mix of emotions within the music reflect that.
‘Dream Rats’ takes a surprising turn and starts off with an almighty growl and an off- key melody following a peaceful introductory clean melody, with slowly sung lyrics over a fast drum rhythm. Scary and unsettling with a melancholy, grungy feel, ‘Dream Rats’ sounds as if it’s reflecting nightmares or the difficult parts of being a mother. No Joy takes you on a journey of emotion with every track.
While there’s a specific theme, No Joy likes to leave much of her music open to interpretation. ‘‘As long as people are open minded about the music, they can hear different things’ which makes the listening experience so much more personal and able to connect with everyone, even if you aren’t a mother yourself.
‘Four’ is a bizarre hybrid of distortion, baby laughter, male and female vocals, birds tweeting and all sorts going on over a soft electronic melody before plunging into a heavy surge or screaming and hard rock. The rest of the album seems to slow down into heavenly, lullabies or indie-pop tracks, similar to the likes of Soccer Mommy’s album Color Theory.
While quite a long album and one you would have to concentrate on listening to, Motherhood is hugely fascinating. The album is filled with a turmoil of emotion shown through endless musical influences and layers. Exploring what it’s like to really be in someone else’s shows and navigating through the bound between a mother and a baby is not the easiest thing to do as it’s so unique and personal but No Joy seems to somehow make the album relatable to everyone in some way.
Rosie Chalk
★★★★☆