Premiere: Meet The Mamas, who drop a disco-charged new single, Dancefloor

Premiere: Meet The Mamas, who drop a disco-charged new single, Dancefloor

The Melbourne group will also be touring the country across the next few months in support of the new track.

With both big-name pop stars (Dua Lipa, Lady Gaga) and rising new acts championing the genre at the turn of the decade, it sounds like disco is going to have moment in the next few years ahead. It's not hard to understand why, either - its four-on-the-floor basslines and swirling melodies are one of music's most consistently joyful and have been since the genre was conceived and popularised - but it's interesting to see it undergo somewhat of a renaissance period at the moment, driven forward by a collection of artists finding their sound within the genre's grooves and putting unique spins to keep it forward-thinking and adventurous.

Melbourne-based collective The Mamas are a group within this realm. Made up of four female vocalists (The Mamas) and four male instrumentalists (who, believe it or not, are brilliantly called The Papas), the eight-strong group have been a champion of home-grown disco-soul for a year or two now, taking the genre back to its Donna Summer-dated glory as they unite sweeping rhythms and disco grooves with vocals that swirl between R&B and soul; each side of their tracks elevated and punchy, but perfectly aligning into place like a snapping jigsaw puzzle that's meant to be.

Their new single, Dancefloor, is one that showcases this perfectly. As mentioned, it's a track that hooks itself upon this classic disco-soul sound but brought forward 30 years or so, with lyrics dressed in empowerment dancing amongst a glittery production that doesn't ever slow down for a break; rich grooves and foot-tapping rhythms inescapable as the single's three-minute-forty duration. It's the first single since their introductory 2018 EP Juicy, and with plenty more on the way - including a national tour also announced today, which will see them trek around the east coast over the next few months - there's no better time to introduce yourself to The Mamas (and The Papas) now.

Do so below, as we premiere Dancefloor a day ahead of its official release, and announce their forthcoming shows:

Tell us about yourself?

The Mamas are like having a soft kiss on the top of the head, and then getting slapped in the face at the same time. We’re an eight-piece act from Melbourne made up of four of the sassiest vocalists you’ll ever meet, and four face-melting rhythm section Papas.

What’s the vibe music-wise?

Our style could be described as a tasty mix of soul, R&B, funk and fem-hop, with bouts of spoken word and comedy. One thing that ties all our music together is that we’re all about sharing female perspectives, making our voices heard, spreading messages of empowerment and strength, and getting people grooving while we’re doing it.  

What are your production and writing processes like?

It changes from song to song. Sometimes we’ll sit down and write as a group, and other times one of us will bring a song to the table and we’ll see how we can grow it together. We found pretty early on that we were all keen on writing about the same topics - some songs tackle serious social issues, and others are purely about having fun, like our new single Dancefloor.

Can you tell us about your new single, Dancefloor?

The idea for Dancefloor first came about a few years ago, when a couple of the chix were mucking around on the piano after a long day at Uni. We made up a song about one of our friends, just for a laugh, and after a great deal of workshopping and a bit of a family sculpting session, the tune is what it is today. We’ve since taken our friend’s name out and replaced it with "baby" to protect their identity. The song is about feeling free, being yourself, and having a magical evening on the dancefloor with a special person (yuck!).

Any tour dates coming up?

Yes! The Dancefloor Tour will take us on a wild ride to a bunch of delicious places: 

Jan 24th Northcote Social Club, Melbourne (Single Launch Party)
Jan 30th Torquay, Cadel Evans Bike Race
Feb 7th Geelong Workers Club, Geelong
Feb 8th The Eastern, Ballarat
Feb 9th Macedon Railway Hotel, Macedon
Feb 21st Smith's Alternative, Canberra
Feb 22nd The Vanguard, Sydney
Feb 23rd The Cambridge, Newcastle
Feb 28th Westernport Hotel, San Remo
March 1st Mordi Fest, Mordialloc
March 1st Sydney Road Street Party, Brunswick

What does 2020 have in store for you?

It’s looking to be a fantastic year at Mamas HQ (we’ve been calling it Hot Girl 2020). So far this year will include a brand new set of fresh material, the Dancefloor single release and tour, a mini-residency coming up in a few months, a new music video, and plenty more rancid content. There may even be a few more episodes of our controversial YouTube series, ‘Keeping Up With The Mamas’, in the works. 

Where can we find more of your music?

You can find us on all major streaming services.

Cop a nice deep earful right here on Spotify and if you’re feeling brave, check out our secret YouTube Channel here.

Keep up with our assorted shenanigans at @themamasmusic (only if you’ve got the stomach for it!).

Follow The Mamas: FACEBOOK

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