Photos by Dylan Simmons
From LA to New York, Allegra Weingarten and Etta Friedman’s friendship has provided the foundation for their indie rock project, Momma. After founding the band in 2015, the two singer-songwriters/guitarists were joined by bassist and producer Aron Kobayashi Ritch and drummer Preston Fulks. The group’s latest LP, Welcome to My Blue Sky, encapsulates the tumultuous summer of 2022 during which they toured their record Household Name. Full of passion, heartbreak, remorse, and acceptance, Welcome to My Blue Sky is a starkly candid emotional rollercoaster of an album exhibiting the decade-long evolution of the band’s sound and friendship.
A month after the album’s release, Momma visited the Fonda to celebrate Welcome to My Blue Sky with a special hometown show. The city welcomed them fondly, as I was greeted by a packed house buzzing with excitement and chatter upon my arrival to the venue. Despite their relatively small following, Momma is evidently skilled at accumulating dedicated fans like myself who’ve closely followed their musical journey and always show up to shows ready to mosh.
Beginning their set with the record’s opener, “Sincerely,” the band swiftly transitioned from the softer, acoustic track to impassioned rock ballad “I Want You (Fever).” In this lead single, Weingarten and Friedman plead for the attention of a detached lover preoccupied with an ever-present ex. This track establishes recurrent motifs throughout the album of blinding infatuation, messy romantic entanglements, and blurred ethical lines.
They follow with “Medicine,” a song with similarly yearning lyrics that equate romantic obsession to a cycle of addiction and healing. As one of their most popular tracks, “Medicine” encapsulates Momma’s typical bass-forward, riffy sound — one evocative of ‘90s alternative rock, recalling acts like The Breeders (a self-admitted inspiration for their sound).
In that moment, I realized a Momma concert was probably the closest I’d get to experiencing my personal favorite musical era, ‘90s grunge. The band full of cool 20-somethings from New York with their crunchy, guitar-heavy sound immediately evoked that era in its prime, despite me never even witnessing it. As if to prove my point, I then noticed that a large stretch of the barricade was occupied by middle-aged men, perhaps longing for a similar time.
With many concerts nowadays being overpopulated with avid TikTok users, it was refreshing to exist briefly in a mostly phone-free zone amidst an audience old enough to drink. The crowd’s dynamic energy was the cherry on top of Momma’s set for me, as we all jumped and moshed tirelessly throughout their setlist.
Fittingly, Momma performed a cover of Elliott Smith’s “Christian Brothers” for the encore, to the crowd’s delight. They finally closed the show with “Speeding 72,” an upbeat rock track from Household Name that is both a personal and fan favorite. At Weingarten’s command to “go fucking crazy,” the crowd expelled the remnants of their energy for the encore, and we all left the venue physically drained, yet spiritually reinvigorated. Momma’s vibrant stage presence echoes an iconic era of rock history further elevated with their own unique sound, and as a long-time fan, I’ll always recommend the experience of seeing them live. With four distinct and beloved records under their belt, Momma’s career trajectory increases exponentially year after year, and I can’t wait to see how this project continues to evolve.
Listen to Momma’s new record, Welcome to My Blue Sky:
