Getting To Know... Mom Rock

Having formed over a mutual love of Weezer, Boston natives Mom Rock have since gone onto find inspiration in the likes of Cage The Elephant, Talking Heads and Catfish and The Bottlemen as they now return with their latest anthemic offering 'I Am The Same'.

With its blistering guitar hooks and catchy choruses, 'I Am The Same' sees the quartet deliver one of their most captivating singles to date. Taking influence from the SoCal pop-punk sound that has proven a hit for the likes of FIDLAR and SWMRS of late, their newest belter knocks up one stellar punch after another throughout it almost five minute runtime.

So with the band proving to deliver the goods once again, we sat down with them to find out more about their origins and what first brought them to the scene.

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What was the first instrument you fell in love with?

Curtis: I would go over to my cousins a lot on weekends and have sleepovers as a kid. I think when I was 7, I went over and they happened to have guitar hero 3 and it was love at first sight. Never looked back.

Wilson: I love drums.

Josh: I don’t remember ever first falling in love with guitar, I just always wanted to play guitar growing up.

Tara: Seeing my dad play guitar when I was little solidified my love for the six string. I later realized that bass was the best instrument.

What has been the most prominent inspiration behind your music so far?

Mom Rock: The music and the bands that we obsessed over growing up were what made us feel good about ourselves. What inspires us most is that we get to give that same good feeling to other people. Looking back, as a fan, on music we found/artists we watched develop and create music they love is such a nostalgic feeling, and it’s incredibly inspiring that people are excited to experience that with us.

What kind of music did you love as a teenager?

Curtis: All through highschool I was obsessed with bands from the 90’s i.e Nirvana, Soundgarden, Green Day, and Weezer. I had a very negative view of anything new that was coming out even if it was by a band I liked. If we’re talking phases though, I had an obsession with knowing everything about Kurt Cobain. There wasn’t a detail of his life I didn’t know.

Wilson: good. a lot of different types of rock. For the most part my music influence is directly influenced by whatever music I'm playing at the time. Originally, growing up in Austin, it was mostly blues. Then more alt/modern/indie rock and what have you, after getting tired of my dad's catalog. A lot of prog rock for a time.

Josh: I was adamantly against streaming services in high school because I didn’t think they paid artists fairly, so I pretty much listened to a few albums (usually some sort of rock) on repeat. My favorites were from Pink Floyd, The 1975, Weezer, Etc.

Tara: My dad listened to classic rock radio, so therefore I listened to classic rock radio. Steely Dan, Rush, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, the Police, and Yes were my favorites growing up. I soon entered the “moody teen” phase and discovered the Smiths and the Cure, whom I still love today (not Morrissey though).

Can you remember the first song that made you want to pursue a life in music?

Curtis: I was jamming with two other students before a highschool band class and we started playing Seven Nation Army. My teacher ran out and asked if we were signed up for the talent show. We said no but looked at each other when one of us said, “You wanna be a band?”

Wilson: I can’t recall a particular song, but I have vivid memories of listening to Rubber Soul several times a day. I just happened to take it from my dad’s Beatles remastered box set when I was maybe 10, and It remains one of my favourite albums today.

Josh: The first thing I remember making me want to play was the video of Jimi Hendrix from Woodstock playing the national anthem.

Tara: Don’t laugh, but “Shining Star” by Earth, Wind & Fire was the instigator for me. I couldn’t explain in words how it moved me, but I guess my explanation for it now is that the funk simply took over, and I just let it.

When you wake up in the morning, what kind of music do you like to listen to?

Curtis: I don’t usually listen to music in the morning but when I do it’s Marty Robbins.

Wilson: the music of the birds outside my window. and Paul Simon.

Josh: Bleachers have an incredible MTV unplugged album from the Stone Pony that I always enjoy but sometimes I listen to the 1975’s live from the 02 or Cage the Elephant’s Live from the Vic on mornings of shows to get excited.

Tara: My morning silence is sacred, but I’d put on some Joni Mitchell if I’m feeling it that day.

How many of your songs have you written about people in your life?

Curtis: I wrote one about a guy I met in the subway. He told me he used to play the xylophone. The song’s called Xylophone.

Wilson: none.

Josh: I didn’t know I was supposed to be counting.

Tara: I’m not much of a songwriter, but I’ve had several songs (mostly love songs and mostly bad) written about me. I’ve been trying to give it a shot and write about my favorite people, such as Alex Trebek and no one else.

What has been the most memorable moment in your career so far?

Mom Rock: In 2019, We were playing a show on 4/20 at a house venue that we’d been itching to play since we started in Boston and It was the last show scheduled to ever happen there. We had a friend that got into screen printing merch from thrifted clothes and printed our first ever batch of shirts for this show. Originally we were first on a bill of 7 bands scheduled to start around 6:30 which had put us in a bit of a funk; however, after an unexpected series of events, we ended up getting moved to 3rd or 4th on the bill around 8:30-9pm instead. We went on to play one of the most energetic sets we’ve played and Josh crowd surfed for the first time during his solo in “Conversation”. At the end of the set, we announced that we had shirts for sale and the crowd quickly stormed the merch table in the back. One of the people asked how many shirts they could purchase and we asked why. They told us they went to school at Boston University, had seen us play before, and posted a video of us playing “Conversation” on her Snapchat story. It turns out her sister back in Colorado responded to the story saying her and her friends from high school had found us on their discover weekly playlists and were really big fans. It was just so cool that she could see us live. We signed a couple shirts to send to Colorado, and it really made us realize that we had a fanbase far beyond our local scene.

Outside of music, what is your biggest passion?

Curtis: I like playing Mario Kart and doing Paul McCartney impressions.

Wilson: I love drums.

Josh: boxed wine (don’t tell my mom pls). I also thoroughly enjoy cooking (I grew up watching a lot of the food network) and sappy movies/TV shows.

Tara: I’ve been bitten by the bread making bug recently, thanks to the Great British Baking Show. I also love my cats an unhealthy amount.

If you weren’t a musician, what other path do you think you might have taken?

Curtis: I always thought about getting into voice acting and or owning a record/flower shop.

Josh: In high school my parents thought I was going to go to med school so probably some sort of normal college then that.

Tara: I’m a few credits away from a degree in economics and political science, so I’d really like to do something in the world of nonprofit management on top of my musical endeavours.

Wilson: At the end of high-school I thought if I didn’t do music I would join the peace corps, or do a culinary program somewhere. Thankfully(maybe) I’m still doing the music.

And what advice would you give to other musicians looking to stay productive through the coronavirus lockdown?

Curtis: There’s always a work around to whatever you want to do. We’ve been recording ourselves at home since we’re not able to interact with our engineers and it’s been turning out better than expected!

Josh: Don’t stress out about taking some days off. Not every day needs to be about productivity, but there’s a ton of work that can be done behind the scenes in preparing for when the lockdown ends like getting releases ready and merch and whatnot.

Tara: Something that’s kept me productive was making and designing some mystery merch items that will be announced soon. I think productivity isn’t the most important area of focus right now and some self-love does us some good.

Wilson: Take care of yourself.

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Mom Rock's latest single 'I Am The Same' is available to stream and download now. Have a listen to it in the player below.