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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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SOCCER MOMMY
@ Rising Festival,
The Forum, Melbourne,
13th June, 2025
(Live Review)

Review by Sam Coronado

Photos by Ian Laidlaw

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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As I’m sure most of us in Australia’s live music and arts capital have realised, Melbourne’s RISING Festival has become a highly anticipated fixture over the past couple of years. What better way to bring all of us cold-weather whingers out from our poorly insulated dwellings, and into the windy, wet, wintry nights than a host of acclaimed international acts, bands and artists, in what would otherwise be the scene’s off season. Whether we’re rugged up in our wool coats and ‘seasonal’ puffers in the dark, chilly warehouse that is PICA, or crammed into a packed-out Forum theatre, it’s clear that one thing winter won’t take away from us is a voracious appetite for great live music. And as RISING comes to a close, it does so after giving Melbourne punters a yet another great feed, quenching that hunger for a moment, but still leaving them wanting more.

Nashville indie singer-songwriter Sophie Allison, who performs as Soccer Mommy, was the last of the international headliner cast to play from the RISING lineup. Allison brought with her a small band to accompany her as she tours her 2024 record Evergreen, a folkier, pastoral and more acoustic pivot from the grunge, shoegaze-y, and straight-up bedroom indie sounds of her previous releases. It was mostly these sounds that she brought with her the last time around, on her last visit to Melbourne when she played at the Croxton Bandroom in Thornbury. I was at that gig, which was far smaller than this most recent occasion, and while my memories of the night are a bit fuzzy I can say it was mostly enjoyable, inoffensive indie stuff, save for a muddy-mix and drowned out vocals.

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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The same things that I liked then were still things I liked this time around. That extends to the material, which I was happy to hear had survived on their touring setlist for the present go around. Possibly her biggest single in “circle the drain” was the second song on that night, and it was again this time. Which is anything but a bad thing; it seemed to satiate the many fans in the crowd who have been eagerly waiting to hear that earwormy hook again. It was a strong moment early on, showing Allison’s great songwriting craft and putting her voice and the band members to good use. The cutesy synth arpeggios, and catchy guitar melodies make what is conventionally a pretty simple pop song more than listenable.

Another standout cut from her back catalogue was “Shotgun”, which likewise has a fantastic stuck-in-your-head hook, but it otherwise takes some pretty major turns away from that bedroom-pop sound with a bit more fuzz and distortion pedal on the guitars, and a thick, grungy bassline to suit. It’s here, and on some of the other tracks off of that Sometimes, Forever LP from 2022 that those dream-pop and shoegaze influences really shine, and do so in a pretty cool way. Allison and the guys weren’t breaching uncharted waters the last time around, and they aren’t this time either, but when they get it right it’s undeniably nice music.

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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But to be just a little bit sour, I can’t quite say that those issues I mentioned about her last gig here had been resolved in the process of scaling up the show. While the mix was bit cleaner and less muddy than that previous show, there were plenty of moments, particularly when Allison sang in a lower register, where the instrumental drowned out her vocals, and it became pretty difficult to discern lyrics. It’s a real shame, because when an act is billed as a singer-songwriter, songwriting is what is advertised, and from my listening it does seem to be a selling point for Allison.

For this reason, the occasional verse tended to blend into that of another song, with a lack of clarity about the subject matter making it difficult to distinguish them in hindsight. It doesn’t help that, while I have favourably mentioned Allison’s range of influences before, not every tune is as diverse and realised. Notably, the material of her latest full-length poses this sort of challenge, because in its intention to go more stripped-back, it puts the onus on Allison as a lyricist to really create moments that are memorable.

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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I can say this because when she does get the opportunity in these newer songs, she definitely seizes them with aplomb. The opening tune on the night in “Abigail” provides many such opportunities, in its quieter moments, for Allison to place her strengths under the lights at the centre of the stage. While this song, along with much of the newer material, lacks the catchiness and immediacy of the aforementioned hooks on the older stuff, Allison more than makes up for that lack with some great verses and a solid performance to match.

As a vocalist, she’s never had a voice that distinct among her indie-darling contemporaries, but the same can be said about many of this genre’s biggest names. It is Phoebe Bridgers adjacent, and comparable as well to Snail Mail, and likely a much longer list than just that. But when the sound guy gives it a chance, and the arrangement suits, her voice delivers plenty of pleasant moments that I’m sure fans of the genre and the sound appreciate.

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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Yes, for those who very much enjoy this sort of music, I’m sure the vast majority of the Soccer Mommy setlist does enough to resonate. It is at worst inoffensive, well-made indie, poppy alt-rock, and at its best some of the catchiest, nicest iterations of what has been since the mid-2010s one of the most well-represented, saturated genres. As the frontwoman of a band, her presence is a bit muted and casual, quipping only occasionally and briefly, mostly to joke about a fairly annoying fan shouting “mommy!” at the end of nearly every song. Not every singer-songwriter is equal parts rockstar, I know, but it would go a long way to show why Allison is not just another one from the indie-darling wave. As I’ve said before, her strengths are there to see, and her fans and fans of the genre will be more than familiar with them after the show. Like when she finishes the final instance of another great hook, and stands to deliver a solo to close out the tune on her guitar.

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Follow SOCCER MOMMY
Instagram · Facebook · Bandcamp
 Spotify · Apple Music · YouTube
soccermommyband.com

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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Photo – Ian Laidlaw

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AMNPLIFY – DB