Thundermother – "Dirty & Divine"

An open letter to the world's biggest hope for hard rock music

Dearest Thundermother,

I can only hope and dream that you read my review of your blinding last album, 2022's "Black and Gold", by which I had the blessing of making your acquaintance. If you did, you will know that it was with more than common joy that I made said acquaintance; it was with both near-feverish ecstasy and an instantly ignited hope for the future of unspoiled old-school hard rock music.

Hard rock, sadly, has a low exchange rate with the younger crowd these days. But, as you would so masterfully demonstrate by way of said album, it can still be written and performed utilizing that same instinctive inspiration and primal energy that not only channel its biggest predecessors (e.g. Little Richard), but the very forces that make this planet spin and life procreate itself.

It is with that exact same near-feverish ecstasy and hope for hard rock music, then, that I have hereby finished my third spin of your latest album, "Dirty & Divine" – an album title more accurate than even an insider might imagine.

I could hear it right away by that nasty guitar sound and ditto riff in opener "So Close". And as much as it disheartened me to learn that, once again, 3/4 of the band including phenomenal vocalist Guernica Mancini had quit their founding guitar player, just as overjoyed was I by the, if possible, even more impressive vocals of your new front-siren Linnéa Vikström. Her tone is badass, her phrasings are mind-blowing, and her delivery adds to the raw, sexy attitude of the music.

The fact that it is sexy, however, has nothing to do with the utter absence of Y-chromosomes in your band rather than the iron-solid heavy swing in your new rhythm group of drummer Joan Massing and happily returned bassist Masjan Lindberg. In a nutshell, your interaction as a band is nothing short of superb; your current line-up virtually couldn't be any better.

Your exemplary collective performance aside, what really gets me on this album (as well as what really got me on the previous one) is your songwriting. While your genre may not exactly be complex, you have been endowed with a faculty for penning melodies that are instantly infectious, irresistibly singable, and perfectly suited for each single song. This especially struck me during "Speaking of the Devil", during which my arms rose towards the heavens in a purely involuntary reaction. That chorus and that melody are perfect, and it will not be the last time I'm using that word here.

Your sound, your melodies, and your irreplicable rock'n'roll attitude all go right to the softest spot of this skeptical, cynical metal heart of mine.

In fact, there are several instances in "I Left My License in the Future" alone. The harmony voices and the background vocals are perfect. The guitar figure during the chorus is perfect. The lyrics are perfect, and the transition back to the verse is perfect. The vocal break is perfect. And… Fuck. You do this all the damn time.

Another aspect that contributes to making your songwriting so commendable is your ability to cultivate various atmospheres. Even with the actual metal I've heard in 2025, "Take the Power" ranks among the most violently ass-beating songs of the year. Just like you can make my arms elevate, you can also make my eyes open in sheer disbelief. I should be rocking out with you here, but you are rocking so hard that you leave me speechless and near-catatonic from sheer overwhelm. While under normal circumstances, a guy like me would tend to be head-over-heels for someone like your vocalist, she scares me a bit on this one.

And then, you switch into that much more melodic and Minor-key solemn "Dead Or Alive". And by the way, am I hearing a clear inspiration from my fine countrymen from D-A-D in that western-twangy lead guitar? And might this be due to your fine producer, and also my countryman, Søren Andersen? Either way, it suits you. Oh yeah, and those modulations are perfect. And the melody is perfect. Again, another tune on this album that will get stuck in my head for the sole reason that I recall its title.

And this is another thing that gets me here: Your ability to sustain your momentum of inspiration and keep on delivering one immaculate song after another throughout the album, whereas other groups might have started to rest on their laurels, come side 2. Indeed, as if that sexy, bouncy shuffle-insinuation in "Bright Eyes" and its sassy, swinging blues rock riff weren't stupefying enough in and by themselves, that chorus just plain acts like you have just invented hard rock music itself, and that you're dead set on showing the world how to wield its magical force. That same thing happens to my arms right here, and I'm finding myself chortling out loud because I can't contain how awesome this is.

And just like my arms do that same thing that they did before, my own (bright) eyes do that same thing which they did during my third spin of your previous LP: Yes, I am tearing up with that pure initially mentioned near-feverish ecstasy and hope for the future of unspoiled old-school hard rock music. Your sound, your melodies, and your irreplicable rock'n'roll attitude all go right to the softest spot of this skeptical, cynical metal heart of mine.

While your genre may not exactly be complex, you have been endowed with a faculty for penning melodies that are instantly infectious, irresistibly singable, and perfectly suited for each single song.

So it pains me a bit, dear Thundermother, that I am not able to bestow upon you a rating representing the uppermost level of quality. The reason for that is – and I think you will understand this – the inherent absence of originality in your expression of choice. A song like "Can You Feel It?", for example, is as much AC/DC as AC/DC themselves ever were, all the way down to the guitar sound, the riffing, and the Angus Young-style fingerpicking.

Also the more melodic riff cadence of "Feeling Alright" is as much of an obvious throwback to 70's Thin Lizzy and 80's Scorpions as its chorus melody and lyrics collectively echo this one little Aerosmith tune, name of "Jaded". And in the concluding "American Adrenaline", the verse and the bridge seemingly try to surpass each other in echoing these two otherwise unrelated 70's bangers, respectively named "Stone Cold Crazy" and "Ballroom Blitz".

However, just like that aforementioned absence of Y-chromosomes in your band is a case of absence rather than lack, the exact same thing goes for originality. It is a factor, but it is by no means critical, let alone a very severe detractor.

To summarize, dearest Thundermother, I can only repeat my early conclusion in reviewing your previous studio effort: Your songs are so mind-bendingly flawless; your attitude so irresistibly brash, and your instrumental interaction so wonderfully, swingingly vivacious and dirty that you should just plain be getting a lifelong monthly grant from the Swedish government. In fact, from the UN.

And if you were to lead a more serious and focused worldwide crusade on part of hard rock music than touring and releasing a new album every 2-3 years, I would be willing to crawl behind you through broken glass to the end of days. Your cause is as important for humankind as any other, and it is of utmost importance that you stick with it. Because you're at least as tremendous as any other hard rock group of any day and age.

With my most sincere admiration and affection,
 – Andy

Rating: 5.5 out of 6

Genre: Hard rock
Release date: 7/2/2025
Label: AFM
Producer: Søren Andersen