Scott Ian loved Mother Superior so much that he managed to get the brains behind the defunct band, Jim Wilson to play a one off gig for his 50th birthday with some help from Pearl Arday, Joey Vera, John Tempesta and Daniel Lanois. What happened at this one off, turned into the formation of a new supergroup – Motor Sister. Playing what is essentially a greatest hits come Scott’s personal favourite tracks from the band, “Ride” is both an introduction and a testament to the cult trio who had so much promise but never got the right break to deliver it fully.
“A Hole” opens up the album with some full on sneer and attitude. A dirty rock and roll vibe pulses through it and its bar rock feel is great. Simple structured punchy chords with interesting lead fills drive the song on over a solid steady rhythm which just pounds away with solid sounding drums. It’s just an all round solid party track and it’s a good indicator for what is to come. “This Song Reminds Me Of You” has a powerful sounding wah-heavy lead riff and when it kicks in, it has that power-blues feel to it, full of melody and edge. Vocally, its well delivered with some clean singing with plenty of power behind it and Pearl Arday’s backing vocals add another dynamic to the song and the punchy blues solo fits in nicely too.
“Beg Borrow Steal” has a real heavy, stomp-like feel to it as it opens up. Rhythmically it’s solid and in the chorus, Wilson rolls back the years, belting the chorus out with a huge amount of passion. It’s got a really interesting breakdown section before the final chorus which spices the track up a little too. “Fool Around” has a dramatic sounding intro before going back into that blues feel again. The emotional vocals, slow paced music which picks up at times and lyrical themes of regret make for a great sorrow-drowning soundtrack. The vocal interplay with Pearl and Wilson is fantastic and the real selling point for this track. “Get That Girl” is more upbeat sounding, like a heavier Cheap Trick. The catchy, radio-friendly rock feel will take hold and have you nodding along and tapping your foot in time with its infectious feel and catchy chorus, and the solo is just great – a simple but effective short melodic passage which really fits the song.
“Head Hanging Low” has a more alternate rock feel to it. The co-vocal work over the minimalistic approach to the music works well enough but the song doesn’t stand out that much apart from the vocal performance, it just lacks that spark to make it stand out. “Fork In The Road” has that spark fortunately. Its fast paced groove is a nice wake-up call and the hard rock edge to it works great for the majority of the song. The slowed down break into the slightly psych-feel solo doesn’t quite sit right with the song but the leadwork is rather impressive so it’s not all bad. Thankfully it kicks back in again for the rest of the song and normal service is resumed. “Little Motor Sister” has that punchy feel to it with plenty of heavy chugging in the guitars which works well, but the big vocal chorus moments really shine through making this one which could work well in the live setting. The hard hitting blues style leads also work rather well too, adding some flair to the basic sounding heavy groove.
“Pretty In The Morning” has a slight Led Zepp vibe to it with the main guitar riff. The heavy classic rock approach with well delivered precise riffs which still manage to sound sleazy but full of tone work well and that blues edge works great. Vocally its strong, especially pearl’s backing vocals which really add to the track. “Whore” has a more up-tempo feel too it, bringing back the attitude and sneering edge. The pounding groove and sleaze-feel is dialled up on this track and once again, the rhythm section really shines. It’s the type of song which would work being played loud and windows wound down, it just gives off that driving rock feel which works great!
“Doghouse” has a more blues like feel to it. The little fills from the guitars over the catchy bassline work wonders and the song’s groove does work well but as the song slows down, it loses some of its impact. The vocals work well in the slow section, but the tempo from the earlier part is lost. It picks up again for the solo, but by the time it gets back to the original feel, the momentum is lost which is a shame. “Devil Wind” closes the album. It starts off acoustically with a hypnotic guitar, clean vocals and a very catchy rhythm which draws attention but when the dirt kicks in round one minute in, the heavy hitting riff just captures your attention. It switches back between the clean and dirty sounding parts to great effect but the main standout part is the lead section which starts at 2:35. The bass and drums build up the groove and the pace whilst the lead line, though simple really ramps up the atmosphere. The song twists between the dirty and clean feel once more before it ends cleanly wrapping up the album.
“Ride” is a strange album. It’s catchy at times and a solid slice of rock n roll, but it’s also rather unremarkable in the fact it all sounds really samey. If you like Mother Superior, then this is surely a need to hear album, but it would work equally well as background music for a casual listener. It’s worth a shot, just don’t expect to totally enjoy the ride. Shame really, the line up promised so much.
(5/10 Fraggle)
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