‘Non, Merci!’, the inaugural track of ‘Rest it Straight,’ the fresh EP by The Mother Z’s, has ingrained itself in my mind with its irresistibly catchy tune. It’s been a constant dance in my thoughts for weeks. This song weaves a tale of the struggle to utter the word ‘no,’ enveloped in an infectiously lively DIY Guitar Pop melody, further enhanced by its evocative French title. These elements combine to form a delightful prelude to the EP’s remaining five songs, all of which exude the same infectious joy.
Andy and Becca Palmer, the sibling duo making up The Mother Z’s, embarked on their musical journey with a vision to blend Punk and the Motown Sound. This journey has now resulted in an amazing new EP that I highly recommend to any enthusiast of quirky, playful, and melodious pop music.
Be sure to catch ‘Non, Merci!’ featured on the ‘The Best Power Pop of 2023‘ Spotify playlist.
Could you share the journey of bringing this record to life? How did all the pieces come together to create the final product?
Andy: We were inspired to make this record for a few reasons. First of all, it’s been 10 years since we ended the Z’s in 2014, and a lot has happened since then, both in our personal lives and in the world! Becca moved across the country, and we both got married and had kids… a lot has changed, and that’s not even mentioning anything that’s happened in the world since then. I was actually writing these songs with the Z’s in mind between 2021 and early 2022 – still very much during the pandemic. I think the pandemic – like for a lot of people – got both of us reflecting on the past and thinking about the (uncertain) future. I was looking back and remembering good times when Becca and I were playing shows and able to spend time as siblings and as bandmates as The Mother Z’s.
The Mother Z’s have always been about fun and resilience, so I was inspired to write in that vein as a reaction to an atmosphere of negativity and fear that I felt had been all around me, really since 2016. I was just tired of it and wanted to kick off the sheets, so to speak, and do something fun. My wife was pregnant, and I had all of this hopefulness in spite of the pandemic, etc., that I wanted to express, while acknowledging the not-so-good things and the uncertainty I felt. The title of the album, “Rest it Straight,” encapsulates this idea too. The phrase is an inside joke between Becca and me that stems from a panicked kayaking trip. It basically means to hang on, stop paddling, and let the current take you for a minute, even if you feel uncertain.
I tend to write differently for The Mother Z’s than when I’m writing songs for my solo project, and I think it just made sense to bring back The Mother Z’s – one of the most fun projects I’ve been a part of with one of my favorite people in the world – as a way to do something positive and hopeful… the only catch was that Becca had moved across the country from Chicago to Portland, and she was pregnant by the time we decided to record. So, we had to figure out a way to record remotely. I recorded my parts in my living room in Chicago and sent Becca the tracks. In a race against time, before her son was born, Becca recorded her parts in her coat closet in Portland, OR. We mixed her tracks together and then sent each completed track to Sumthins Recording in Joliet, IL, for final mixing and mastering. We’re pretty happy with how it turned out!
Among the gigs you’ve performed, which one holds an indelible place in your memory, and why does it stand out?
Andy & Becca: We actually reference this in a song on our new album, “Sheboygan.” Over the years, The Mother Z’s have invited friends to play bass with us live as a special guest (we normally perform as just an acoustic guitar and a small drum set-up). On one occasion at a Halloween show in Sheboygan, WI, Andy’s friend Pat joined us to play and sing “Monster Mash.” The stage was really small, and Pat, apparently channeling the Misfits’ version of the song, burst into singing so suddenly that he almost knocked Andy off of the stage. Andy had to jump down to avoid being hit by Pat’s bass and spent the rest of the song by himself on the floor. We still crack up when we remember it, and it’s definitely become one for the history books.
While you can’t dictate how people interpret your music, are there specific elements you wish to highlight that set your songs apart?
Andy & Becca: (Andy) I think what sets our songs apart, first and foremost, is the sibling dynamic in the writing and performance of the songs. I like to write little duets where Becca and I are in conversation with each other, like on the song “Rest it Straight,” where we kind of go back and forth, trading verses and talking to each other, and sometimes giving each other a bit of a hard time in the lyrics like in Becca’s line to me: “you gotta come down to earth sometimes.” We hope it feels like you’re in on a conversation or inside joke between us. I also am really influenced by Motown music – the hooks and the fun energy, so I hope that comes through too.
(Becca) I think what sets us apart – especially live – is the amount of energy we bring, despite performing mainly as an acoustic two-piece band. We both grew up listening to pop-punk and punk rock, and I think that’s the kind of energy we bring to a live show, which is kind of that element of surprise. We’d get on stage, opening for a rock band, and people would think we were going to be a mellow acoustic project, but, we would kind of sneak attack them with our songs and our energy on-stage. I also really like our bro-sis harmonies and banter.
If tasked with introducing your music through three songs, which ones would you choose, and what story do they collectively convey to new listeners?
Andy & Becca:
Our songs have always been a mix of fun, attitude, nostalgia, and hopefulness. We think these three are great examples if you’re new to the Z’s:
Dead Weight – this has a lot of that Mother Z’s-style rock n’ roll attitude (with a sense of humor)
Sweater Weather – this is a good example of some of our more wistful, nostalgic tunes
Holy Smokes! – this one has our signature brother/sister back-and-forth and some of those Motown hooks we love!
How would you describe the evolution of your sound in this new album compared to your previous works? Were there intentional shifts in style or themes?
Andy & Becca: The Mother Z’s started with plans for a much bigger sound than we originally ended up with. Andy wanted to start a pop-punk Motown band after college. When we started singing together, at first, we were just practicing and having fun, but sort of in keeping with that DIY use-what-you’ve-got mentality, we ended up going on as an acoustic duo. Something about it just worked. But while we started off kind of lo-fi and acoustic, I think we both wanted to try a bigger sound. We did that on our records “Permanent Collection” and “Rock & Roll Time Machine,” which featured a full drum kit and electric instrumentation. They were fun projects, but we think “Rest it Straight” is really the best of both worlds. We kept some of what we liked about our “big sound” on songs like “Non, Merci,” but we mostly went back to our minimalist roots with the acoustic guitar, Becca’s patented 1-2 beat on a small drum set-up, and a focus on the vocals. We think this is the best version of The Mother Z’s’ sound.
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