Bad Mothers Union have released “God’s Intercom,” a euphoric, unbridled kraut-psych-rock single that explodes from its opening bar and never quite lets go. Established in Kilkenny by frontman Conor Kavanagh, the band operates as a musical collective, thriving on collaboration and the distinct voice each player brings to their sound. The current lineup of Kavanagh (vocals, guitar), Shay English (bass), James O’Neill (drums, percussion), Tim Flood (bass), Céin O’Dowd (guitar, bouzouki), and Ethan Corcoran (synth, bass, vocals) is joined on the single by Joel Pitcher, Michael Lanigan, and Aaron Harbourne, with Brandon Murphy of Peer Pleasure contributing vocals during the staccato middle section and Fiachra Carey on saxophone, who, when recording his parts, dressed like a member of Madness. Because of course.
“God’s Intercom” was initially conceived during a jam session in a Methodist Church in Kilkenny, hanging around in various forms for years until Michael Lanigan pushed up the BPM and transformed it into the celestial force it is today. There is no verse-chorus-verse structure here. Aaron’s drums propel the track forward while guitars swirl untethered around each other, Shay’s bass keeping things anchored with a driving pulse before erupting into a flurry of notes that sounds like Entwhistle and Butler fighting each other as things take off again. Kavanagh’s lyrics are stream of consciousness, pulling in characters from his youth alongside insecurities, self-doubt, and teenage reminiscence, while Murphy’s lines during the middle section, “I’ve been looking at you while you’ve been laughing at me and I’ve been laughing at you this whole entire time,” land like how a conversation with God might actually go, should he ever answer that intercom.
Drawing on Sonic Youth, The Osees, Mogwai, and Primal Scream alongside the surrealist influence of David Lynch, Bad Mothers Union create music that feels like an unrelenting, infinite spiralling force of energy, unperturbed by what the outside world thinks. “God’s Intercom” is exactly that, a track that builds to crescendo, drops to recharge, and then takes off again, blissful euphoria concocted from voice, drums, bass, guitar, and some ska saxophone.