Not only did I go through 2, count ‘em, two copies of Jane’s Addiction’s Nothing’s Shocking when it was released, I started looking for similar, progressive-minded metal acts that could fill the void until the band released Ritual de lo Habitual.During that time, I came across the Atlanta, GA band Mary My Hope.
Initially, I wasn’t that impressed; I spent some time with M.M.H.’s debut (and only release) Museum which seemed too tame to rival Jane and too polished to move me.
But the follow up to Museum, an e.p. (or “cd5” or “maxi-single,” depending on those novel formats that record labels used to come up with) suddenly brought me some newfound interest in the band.
The Suicide Kings e.p. features one of Museum’s best moments, “Monster Is Bigger Than The Man,” a couple of non-album tracks and a couple of live tracks. The new material and live recordings address every complaint that I had about the debut and it shows M.M.H. in a much better, rawer light.
Leader James Hall is responsible for much of this, wailing with a possession that sounds like he’s in front of a large audience. It isn’t until you hear him mention that he saw a cockroach scurry across his amp and hear the sparse applause after killing his voice that you realize he’s in a small club.
The key is: he doesn’t care.
Sadly, Mary My Hope disbanded shortly after Suicide Kings and they had a chance to see other bands mining similar elements achieve success in just a few short years. But even if a band like Smashing Pumpkins was able to hit at a more appropriate time, their success was paved by the bands who braved small clubs and large insects, motivated only by the energy created through their (then) out-of-step music.
Appropriately heavy and wonderfully Bowie-esque, Mary My Hope remains one of those bands that may have eventually found success if they could only have found a way to stay together during those years of public indifference.
