MOTOR SISTER
Ride
Metal Blade (2015)
Rating: 8/10
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Motor Sister is a hip ’n’ happenin’ hard rock outfit put together by Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian in worship of one of his favourite bands, Mother Superior.
What we get here are 12 reworked Mother Superior tunes featuring Scott Ian (Anthrax) on guitars, Ian’s wife Pearl Aday on backing vocals, Joey Vera (Armored Saint, Fates Warning) on bass, John Tempesta (Exodus, Testament, White Zombie, The Cult) on drums and Mother Superior frontman Jim Wilson (ex-Rollins Band) on vocals and guitar. For those not in the know, Mother Superior were a straight up rock ’n’ roll band from Los Angeles whose debut album The Heavy Soul Experience was issued in 1996.
For his 50th birthday, Scott Ian assembled a group of friends to perform Mother Superior songs with at his house. From there, Motor Sister formed, basing itself around Mother Superior songs.
With Ride, we get 12 stripped down, raw rock ’n’ roll numbers almost in that fizzing MC5 no frills manner. This starts with the riotous ‘A-Hole’, featuring that killer soulful vocal from Jim Wilson and a roaring set of riffs – with all tracks being given extra punch by the addition of a second guitarist. With Ride, it was a simple case of get in the studio and record live over the course of two days, and this is the result; a pure rock ’n’ roll experience by which many young upstarts should be judged and found guilty against.
The tracks come thick and fast, from the orgasmic electricity conducted via ‘This Song Reminds Me Of You’ with its psychedelic funk riffage and hard drum hits, the slamming ‘Beg Borrow Steal’, and the sleazoid blues-drenched soul of ‘Fool Around’. With all background vocals performed by Pearl Aday (daughter of Meat Loaf), Motor Sister has a sudden reputation of being more than just down with the kids, but a genuinely enthusiastic project and dream of its participants while adding extra guile to those already much loved tracks.
This is very much bluesy hard rock played for keeps, all blood sweat and fury channelled into those two days the musicians spent together. And boy does it show, with each and every one of them chomping at the bit and putting everything into every one of these cuts. The catchy glam stomp of ‘Get That Girl’ is unhealthily infectious, while ‘Head Hanging Low’ hints rather oddly at R.E.M. I can forgive them for that though, as the likes of ‘Little Motor Sister’ comes grunging out of the blocks only to run headlong into the super-charged fury of ‘Whore’ and ‘Doghouse’ before leaving us rattled and dishevelled with the breathtaking closer ‘Devil Wind’.
Motor Sister is being more than just a time to reminisce but more a case of rejuvenation, yet kept in order and well-toned by Wilson’s emotive tones.
Neil Arnold
