CREDIT: MATT BOURNE
Mother Mother is set to kick off Fall 2013 with a bang, headlining Fanshawe Student Union’s orientation concert on September 10.

I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. Whether you're the type who's obsessed with new music or not, summer simply wouldn't be the same without it. Whether at festivals or parties, in car stereos or on patios, here's hoping your summer was full of music and friends. Welcome to another year at Fanshawe College!

As a part of So You Think You Can Frosh, Vancouver-based Mother Mother is headlining our 2013 Orientation concert with The Beaches and Texas King on September 10. Having appeared on campus for performances and radio interviews over the years, the band — frontman Ryan Guldemond plays guitar and shares vocal duties with keyboardists Molly Guldemond and Jasmin Parker, over rhythm work by bassist Jeremy Page and drummer Ali Siadat — are no strangers to Fanshawe.

Mother Mother released The Sticks, their fourth and most recent studio album, in September 2012. Texturally darker than previous releases, The Sticks has an underlying subtext of secession and societal mistrust, a modern noir album that is at times playful and tender. While the band didn't set out to make a concept album, their selfaware dynamic helped them to see those textures forming as they worked.

“It wasn't a premeditated idea, but getting into making the record it was kind of clearly moving in that direction,” Guldemond explained. “Upon acknowledging that, you can do certain things to accentuate that, such as an intro piece written while we were mixing the album — ‘Omen' was a direct effort to accentuate the concept record quality, but it only came after stumbling upon the fact that that was happening.”

Talking to Guldemond struck a lot of metaphors oddly applicable to the start of a new school year. Dissecting the album, he compared it to the band's previous release together and stressed the importance of being flexible and embracing mistakes in order to foster growth.

“I think a lot of music happens like that, people come out with something that has great cohesion, and critics and fans think it was this master plan,” he continued. “But quite often it's not, you're just grasping at straws and trying to find something… at the very least, palatable. Certain times that can come out feeling very purposeful, I just think music and art are just happy accidents most of the time.”

Not one to congratulate himself, Guldemond speaks with modesty and nonchalance, almost belying the tremendous effort he and the band invest into their music. But it's evident when you listen to the album — The Sticks is more than simply accidentally cohesive, it's the product of a lot of analysis, introspection and care.

According to Guldemond, that reactive approach to crafting their music is a natural instinct for Mother Mother, and the process of making a record is becoming quicker as they embrace and explore it as one of their strengths.

“(Making an album) used to take longer. I think we're getting better at being a bit more swift, and I think that has a lot to do with being a bit more in tune with that reactionary element. You can talk something to death, but see yourself react to something and you'll find answers — if something doesn't have that immediate cathartic response, you're best to just abandon it and chase something down a different rabbit hole.”

The key, it seems, is in a willingness to grow.

“For Eureka, the demos were very stripped down to allow interpretation to shape the song and people to find their own parts,” Guldemond explained. “With The Sticks, it was somewhere in between — sometimes the demos were really elaborate and other times not, but in the end we wanted not to tailor things too thoroughly before going into the studio. We wanted there to be some room for improv and happy accidents.”

“And now I think on the next record there's a bit more focus and thought around a new sound, and that can be discovered in the demoing,” Guldemond said. “I hope that we do surprise ourselves and we do dismantle the construct of how we write, I think that's how a band stays fresh. And when you're putting out your fifth record, you definitely run the risk of being perceived as sounding stale.”

Strong from a busy summer including festival performances at Edgefest in Toronto and X-Fest in Calgary, Mother Mother is far from sounding stale. For more on the band and their latest album The Sticks, visit them online at mothermothersite.com or follow along on Twitter @mothermother.

They take SUB Courtyard stage with The Beaches (@thebeaches) from Toronto and Fanshawe's own Texas King (@texaskingmusic), and the show is open to everyone. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door, or free individually within every FSU Orientation Kit, along with a lot of other items useful for getting into the rhythm of the school year.

And for more of the latest in music news, album streams and more, consider following this column on Twitter @fsu_bobbyisms. I'm no expert, but I have a feeling it's going to be a good year for music — be sure to check out our events online at fsu.ca. Welcome home or welcome back, I'm out of words.