Music > Audioline
MAMA OH NO
13/02/22
With their emotionally-charged lyrics, soulful sound and varied influences, MAMA OH NO are one of the most exciting new bands on the Norwich scene at the moment.
Outline spoke to band members Jack Gascoigne and Simon Reinhardt to find out more about their history, what they’ve been up to recently, and their plans for the future…
Q: I love your band name, it’s very striking! How did it come about?
Simon: The name comes from the fact that we realised early on how Jack and myself are ‘mama’s boys’. There’s something special and almost fragile about being mama’s boys. Both in a good and a bad way. We tend to stay hidden behind our mothers’ backs. For that reason we settled on the name.
I lost my mother some years before we started the band and I had been down in a black hole for a long time. This band for me was and still is a memory of her to stay with me. A way for me to keep moving and go all the way. The “Oh No” is kind of a light way of looking at death. I believe that’s sometimes necessary, at least for me. We all have to leave at some point. All we can do is to make the best of it while we’re here.
Q: Tell me about the band members and where you’re all from.
Jack Gascoigne, lead singer and guitarist, grew up in a little village just outside of Cromer. Simon Reinhardt, backing singer and drummer, was born and lives in Copenhagen, Denmark. Bailey Cullum, backing singer and bassist, comes from a little village just outside of the city, called St. Faiths. Eli Bidmead, backing singer and keyboard player, has now moved to Belfast after living in Norfolk for several years.
Q: How/when did you meet and end up forming a band?
Jack: I had just shut down my first band, but still HAD to make music with somebody. I had just recorded a track with Jason Baldock, who runs an analogue studio from an old bunker in RAF Coltishall. I needed somebody to play with, so I kept putting out several adverts in Norwich band groups, asking for a drummer. I had no luck for months. Simon eventually saw my posts and contacted me, as he was living in the city at the time. Bailey was in the last band playing guitar, so he happily joined as a bassist. Eli was a guy I just always wanted in my life in some way, and we’d met each other a few times at gigs and a couple of parties, and somehow the fact he played instruments never came up. So when I found out he could play, I nabbed him right away. He was already in loads of bands, but I needed him, and his energy, so here we are. All three boys are good boys, and I love them all very much.
Q: On your Facebook page you describe yourself as a ‘soul rock band’. Who would you say are your greatest musical influences?
Jack: One of the biggest for me is Otis Redding. His voice and the way he controlled the dynamics of the band was insane. Dan Auerbach(and his bands the Black Keys and The Arcs) is also a massive influence on me, I just love the way he writes and produces and his approach.
Kevin Parker(Tame Impala) is another. His approach to music is very instinctive, and his sound is something that just totally blew me away as a young musician and still does today. The Ronettes and Phil Spector are also a big one, I believe that man was really onto something special. I’m going to have to mention Brian Wilson as well, as he is a true genius and Pet Sounds is playing in my car every single day. The band Khruangbin are a more modern influence on the sound of the band, they also have something truly special.
Q: What do you think it is about your music that makes you different to others out there?
Jack: I think what makes our music different from others out there is my voice (without blowing my own trumpet!) and our focus on evoking emotions with our writing, and I think that's what people are latching on to. When writing, we tend to really try to go with what makes us feel good. That energy leaks through into the performances we do and I think people respond really well to this. Especially in Norwich these days, the scene is so saturated with intense, heavier bands, and I think people like us because we are something less aggressive, with a different kind of energy, that can still stand up to rock bands.
Q: How do you tend to go about writing songs? Does it start with someone coming up with lyrics, or the music first? Or does it vary?
Jack: I usually start with a sound. If I find a sound I like, for some reason it really helps me write a part with that sound, and that usually ends up informing my decisions on the other parts. For example, if I record some drums that are distorted, this will give me a certain vibe, which then helps me write another part on a different instrument, because I have given myself a pre-established direction. Depending on how far along in the process the song is, I might take the song to a band for us to hash it out live and get something together.
Q: Norfolk isn’t always the first place that comes to mind when someone mentions new music talent. How do you think working from here has affected you as a band?
Jack: I think in the past it has been difficult, because of COVID and the distance between Norfolk, Copenhagen and Belfast. The Norwich music scene has seriously improved since COVID, though. It's like people realised what they were missing, and what they had, right here in the city on their doorstep. There are so many more people at our Norwich gigs now than there were, and some of the same faces as well as new ones too which is really lovely.
A downside of Norfolk is that it’s out of the way, and it's not a county you pass through to get somewhere else, so you don’t come to Norfolk unless you have a specific reason to, so newcomers can be few and far between. This is why we plan to branch out further into the country over this year to grow our audience!
Simon: I always loved coming to Norfolk, it’s quite different from where I’m from. Especially the people who are extremely kind and always say “sorry” like they think they’re in the way or something. Not that people are not nice in Denmark, but it’s just different.
When we’re all together in the house in Cromer there’s a certain vibe going on and I love that. It’s often very chaotic as there’s always so many people and cats around. Being an only child I definitely needed to get used to that in the beginning but now I can’t live without it. It’s super inspiring and I found that it was something I needed in my life.
Q: What releases have you put out there so far, and are you planning to release any more soon?
Jack: We have just put out singles so far, but we are currently working on putting together an album. We have a new single coming out very soon, and it’s called ‘Don’t Be Shy’. It has a strong Phil Spector ‘wall of sound’ vibe, so be ready to enjoy that!. After that we will also be releasing that first single I wrote with Jason, ‘Don’t Go South’.
Q: As a band, what is the accomplishment you’re most proud of?
Our biggest accomplishment to date is having one of our biggest influences contact us and telling us how much they loved what we are doing, which really meant something to us.
Q: And do you have any big aims for the future? Any festivals or venues you can see yourselves playing in the next 5 years?
Jack: Our biggest goal right now is getting us all in the country for long enough that we could fit a tour in. We would love to play ALL the festivals. Latitude, Glastonbury, Reading, all of them. An album is going to be our next move after these next few singles, so be ready for a full MAMA album!
Q: Tell us where your next gigs are so we can come and see you!
Our next gig is at the Louis Marchesi Crypt in Norwich on the 26th of March, and after that we have a headline gig at Voodoo Daddy's Showroom on the 8th of April.
Ticket for Voodoo Daddy's HERE