Playing smart and amiable indie rock with an alternative edge, biting wit, and a jazzy sense of sophistication, Canada's Mother Mother rose to national prominence in the early 2010s bolstered by the enigmatic presence of siblings Ryan (vocals, guitar) and Molly Guldemond (vocals, keyboards).nnHailing from Vancouver, the quintet rode a series of indie successes on the Last Gang label to a Top Ten chart placement with their acclaimed 2011 album Eureka. Signing with Universal a few years later, the band's increasingly bold sound paralleled their rising success on albums like 2014's Very Good Bad Thing and 2016's No Culture.nnRyan Guldemond had been writing songs and wanted to start playing them at local clubs. Feeling the tunes needed harmonies, he asked his sister Molly Guldemond to join him. Guldemond invited her friend Debra-Jean Creelman to add her voice to the mix, and the group's three-part harmonies were soon wowing audiences. In late 2005, Mother Mother recorded and released a self-titled and self-released CD with bassist Jeremy Page and drummer Kenton Loewen aboard as the group's new rhythm section. The album sold poorly but earned enthusiastic reviews, and helped the band score some high-profile gigs, including the Vancouver International Jazz Festival, the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the Pop Montreal Festival, and spots opening for the Wailin' Jennys, the Dears, Think About Life, and the Cat Empire. Mother Mother's solid live shows and positive press earned the attention of the Canadian label Last Gang Records, which signed the band to a deal and made plans to re-release their debut album.nn Given a new mix, some additional overdubs, and two new songs, the album was renamed Touch Up and fared much better commercially the second time around, as well as generating a new batch of enthusiastic reviews upon its release in early 2007. The band then underwent some lineup changes: Ali Siadat replaced Loewen on drums for 2008's O My Heart, and later that year Creelman left the band, with Jasmin Parkin joining on keyboards soon after. With 2011's Eureka, Mother Mother broke through commercially, hitting the Billboard Canadian Album Top Ten and yielding the hit single "The Stand." They even landed a series of television commercials for Kraft Foods with their single "Bright Idea." The band's conceptual fourth album, 2012's The Sticks, also fared well, this time reaching number 11 on the Canadian charts. Their growing success led to a deal with Universal Music Canada, and the heavier, technology-themed synth rock sound of 2014's Very Good Bad Thing hit the Top Five and earned the band a nomination for Group of the Year at the 2015 Juno Awards. A U.S. release followed that spring on Def Jam. In November 2016, Mother Mother issued the single "The Drugs," one of several tracks on their sixth album, No Culture, that referenced Ryan Guldemond's newfound sobriety. Released a few months later, the album was another chart success and the band supported it with a lengthy national tour. Their sixth album, the emotional Dance and Cry, appeared in late 2018. ~ Mark Deming & Marcy Donelson