I experienced my first mother concert in 1991 in the Hamburg Kaiserkeller. Unfortunately, the club is not as pleasant as its legendary Beatles history would suggest. Arne Zank and I are waiting our legs in the belly; from the punk concerts in Hafenstrasse and Co. we are used to more Christian beginnings. After midnight, the band enters the stage in front of a small audience. What we hear blows our ears off: “Israel”, “Old and gay” and “All people are equal”.
A drunk sprinkles beer on the singer Max Müller, whose face, by the way, only shows a piece of his nose because of his long, curly hair. The slim miller beats the troublemaker off the non-existent stage. “There’s nothing better / Because that’s life / There’s something against / And there’s something for.”
The band has apparently transformed
Three years later I see mother live next time. In the meantime I got to know Dirk and founded our band Tocotronic with him and Arne. We just became part of the Hamburg music scene. I had listened to the mother album DU BIST NOT MY BRUDER with raucous titles like “Laughing” is cheap, “Michael” and “How made for each other” over and over again. And now the band is presenting their new album HAUPTSACHE MUSIK for the premiere of Jörg Buttgereit’s film “Schramm” (with mother drummer Florian Koerner von Gustorf in the leading role and music by Max Müller).
The band has apparently transformed: lovely melodies, smooth arrangements and still impressive lyrics: “We say that we know everything / Everything has been there before / And still search and miss / Why none of us understand / We say: It is just music”. At that time, the mothers were also very well respected in the Hamburg music scene, but it was obvious that their approach was more uncompromising than that of most Hamburg school protagonists. Apart from Kristoph Schreuf (Kolossale Jugend / Bon Scott) and Tilman Rossmy (Dieregierung), who just moved to Hamburg, the term rock music was a dirty word in these circles anyway.
Mother’s music is almost always serious and completely unironic
After HAUPTSACHE MUSIK everyone was waiting for the band’s next pop album. Mother, however, went to Tuscany and recorded the brute noise rock album NAZIONALI in a pigsty. It is her most radical work. I have to admit that the corners of my mouth turned down at the time. I’m not averse to bulky music, but it took me a few years to appreciate the songs here. “There is only one time / The new time / The old time is dead”. “Die Neue Zeit” is one of the greatest of the many great mother songs.
I only got to know the band personally in the noughties. One moment Max Müller is extremely self-confident and the next moment he wipes everything aside with a funny and sarcastic saying. I highly recommend checking out his Facebook page to get a glimpse of his subtle humor. In mother’s music it is clear: it is almost always serious and completely unironic. It gives free rein to pain and deep feelings. She knows no taboos and no limits. She doesn’t hide behind theories.
Nevertheless, mothers do not feel obliged to surround themselves with a sacred aura
At the band’s great concerts, Max Müller rolls karthically on the floor. And yet mothers do not feel obliged to surround themselves with a sacred aura. This attitude has repeatedly been reflected in bizarre actions. For example in a boxing competition between two band members or in a concert where the singing of the sick Max Müller was recorded over the telephone from the hospital.
This double meaning makes mother even more extraordinary than they already are. Mom are always there. They would never confuse a lack of commercial success with a lack of success. Cast changed. Singer Max Müller and drummer Florian Koerner von Gustorf remain the constant core of the group. When you’ve just lost sight of them, a new album will appear. They don’t repeat themselves. They go on and give us music and timeless aphorisms. For example, “the old hate the young / until the young are the old”. I’m already looking forward to their next album!
Regarding Jan Müller’s “Reflector” podcast: www.viertausendhertz.de/reflektor
This column first appeared in the Musikexpress issue 04/2022.