Thundermother: Heat Wave (AFM, 2020)

All-female Swedish hard rock band Thundermother helped make this summer a scorcher with Heat Wave, their fourth full-length album. It’s their second album since revamping their lineup, and each band member had a hand in writing the songs on Heat Wave.

Heat Wave is one of those hard rocking albums that manages to completely capture the old school rock n’ roll energy while still seeming new and vital. Like Airbourne, they riff hard on that classic AC/DC sound, but add their own spark. In Thundermother’s case, that spark is part Aerosmith-style bluesy swagger and an abundance of sheer energy. Once you hit play on Heat Wave you can almost see Filippa Nassil’s nonstop riffs laying waste to concert stages, and singer Guernica Mancini’s massive voice serves as instigator-in-chief, encouraging everyone to get rowdier and rowdier with each song.

Thundermother completely nails the high-octane, no-frills hard rock sound, and that kind of unbridled rock n’ roll revelry is exactly what this year needs. Fans of rock bands with strong female members – Smackbound and Crucified Barbara come to mind – will love Heat Wave, but honestly so should anyone who still blasts AC/DC, Thin Lizzy, Aerosmith and the like. Thundermother is definitely bringing the heat.

Edition Notes: There are regular and deluxe editions of Heat Wave available. The deluxe version comes in a digipack and includes three additional studio songs as bonus tracks.