7/10

With their eagerly-awaited debut album 'Apex Predators', MAMA ft. Antonella plunge headfirst into the unknown, prodding a collision of poetry, pain, and raw beauty that feels as dangerous as it is divine. This is a love letter to the chaos of being human. Every sound feels carved from bone, and every lyric steeped in the kind of experience that only comes from living through fire.

Fronted by Antonella Gambotto-Burke, a writer of remarkable emotional intelligence and unflinching honesty, and produced by Gavin Monaghan, the alchemist behind some of Britain’s most enduring sounds, Mama’s music refuses categorisation. It’s a thrilling fusion of alt-blues, roadhouse rock, darkwave, and gothic Americana, haunted by the ghosts of Patti Smith, Nick Cave, and Amy Winehouse, yet entirely their own beast. The result is a narcotic swirl of beauty and brutality.

Antonella’s voice carries the kind of power that stops time. You can hear the grief, rebellion, years of surviving and still choosing tenderness. Monaghan’s production, stripped to its bleeding edge, mirrors that intimacy with raw guitars recorded straight to iPhone, feverish percussion, and a cinematic sense of space that feels simultaneously eternal and claustrophobic.

Beyond its musical brilliance, Apex Predators is a declaration that art made by women of experience and depth is not only relevant but essential. It speaks to the rage and grace of those who’ve lived long enough to see the world in both shadow and flame.