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The Mother Hips started to form as a goup in 1990…they were not actually “The Mother Hips” at that time, but the basics of the group were in place. Like many music artists, their initial gigs were parties and other less than formal occasions, but they were able to grow from there. Within a few years they were in full stride and playing in venues all over Northern California.
The first thing we noticed about “Time We Had” was the interesting drumming. If you pay attention to it you’ll notice that every other measure John Hofer (drummer, duh!) delays the beats of both the bass and the snare so that you get an almost syncopated feel. It’s cool sounding, and pretty difficult to do as the normal musician would have trouble delaying like that. It just doesn’t “feel” right. Bravo, Sir Hofer of NorCal.
One of the key things we look for at The Reviewist is how well a group or band plays live. We think this is important, as it is a true indicator of the talent of the band (not the talent of the recording studio and mastering). The first song we actually heard from The Mother Hips was a live version of “Red Tandy”, and we were very impressed. We would almost venture to say that the live version was better played than the mastered, pruned and fluffed studio version. This can be attributed to many factors, but one of the cool things about playing live is the synergy that you just will not find in a recording studio. When a group is just rockin’ on stage it comes out better than what you can get on a recording. Another thing that playing live shows is the time that a group has dedicated to practicing. Being mostly classically trained musicians at The Reviewist, we can appreciate that The Mother Hips have obviously spent a lot of time grinding it out on the fretboard at home (which pays dividends on stage).
“Time We Had” came out on the album “Kiss the Crystal Flake” in 2007. You can hear more of them at their webpage and at MySpace.
Special thanks to Mr. Dork Swording for pointing us in the direction of The Mother Hips.
