Mars Motel

We are stoked to exclusively premiere “The Enemy”, the debut single by Brooklyn indie rockers Mars Motel. Fans of sophisticated alt pop might know frontman Sarik Kumar as one of the members of dream pop trio Twin Wave. In Mars Motel, Sarik Kumar adds song writing and vocal skills to his guitar chops, and rounds his new project out with Wesley Wynne on guitar, Jordan Lipp on drums and Justin Lieberthal on bass.

“The Enemy” is an energetic and instantly intriguing track with a catchy urgency expressed in its pulsating rhythm and playful guitar work. Sarik Kumar’s soft and mellow vocals lend the song a warm touch and stand in fascinating contrast to the track’s fast pace. Lyrically, “The Enemy” addresses our society’s obsession with social media and the loss of ever truly being reflective and alone, comparable to the intangible force watching over every move we make like in George Orwell’s classic “1984”.

Sarik Kumar reveals:

“To take this concept a bit further, I wanted the listener to not only acknowledge the presence of this force, but also address that many people, because of technological advancements, find some sort of comfort in never truly being alone, broadcasting their daily activities for the world to see and respond to. This concept is labeled as “The Enemy” and can be seen as a sort of “Black Mirror” allusion where one finds a sense of comfort and company being watched and viewed, instead of living through life’s natural moments of solitude. As the pre-chorus goes: The Enemy will be your friend when your alone // The Enemy will take hold of you, when its your time of end.” - Glamglare

It’s easy to get lost in one of the elements of “The Enemy.” The vocals in the track from Mars Motel are self-assured and penetrating. The mixing often emphasizes the percussion. That’s particularly true following the 23-second intro, when the percussion and bass line are given equal rights with the vocals. Of course, there is our favorite element – the guitar. The solo that starts at 2:43 isn’t demanding, but it is impactful within the context of the song.

However, as with almost every song, the interplay of the elements determines the strength of “The Enemy.” The track evidences a band chemistry and “tightness” that are typically beyond the reach of a group yet to release its debut EP (one is slated to drop later this year).

Mars Motel selected “Retro” as one of the search terms when they uploaded “The Enemy” to Soundcloud. That’s appropriate, since the track carries a 1990s feel with it. On the other hand, the inspiration for the lyrics is modern day. The message is directed to today’s obsession with social media and the comfort that comes to a person from approval after broadcasting daily activities. While technological advances that allowed day-to-day observations of one’s life were once universally considered “the enemy,” people now freely post seemingly intrusive insights into their lives, because “The enemy will be your friend when you’re alone.” - Indie Obsessive

Brooklyn four-piece Mars Motel share the bittersweet and nostalgic sound of ‘Green’. Recounting the loss of a loved one, the gestation of ‘Green’ began over ten years ago, it being the first song ever written by guitarist and frontman Sarik Kumar. - Born Music Online

The latest release from Mars Motel is penetrating, even before giving attention to the lyrical content. “It’s Here Tonight” is a track in which the vocal, instrumental and lyrical contributions are so tightly braided that they unite into a continuous, foreboding fabric that still allows listeners to appreciate the individual threads. Thus, “It’s Here Tonight” is fully appreciated only after listening often enough to allow your focus to rotate through the three contributions during different playbacks.

The lyrical content relates to an impending disaster. At times, the warning is that it’s almost here tonight, but more often the “almost” qualification is dropped. According to the song submission on SubmitHub, “The protagonist is traveling throughout the world in search of new and unique experiences, yet is always cursed with the feeling that it all might end too soon.”

The instruments create the appropriate atmosphere for what may be a pre-apocalyptic world. We particularly favor the ominous guitar “punctuation” after many of the lines in a verse. For example, the punctuation occurs after four consecutive lines starting with “Oh no, it’s here tonight” at the 0:32 mark of the song. More often, the instruments cooperate to provide textured support for the vocals.

Portions of “It’s Here Tonight” remind us of early Black Sabbath.” The bass shares characteristics with “Geezer” Butler, one of Sabbath’s founding members. Another song by Mars Motel, “America The Machine,” includes a guitar intro that would be appreciated by another founding member – Tony Iommi. - Indie Obsessive

Mars Motel are back with their latest single ‘It’s Here Tonight‘. The Brooklyn based trio have released a stream of brilliant tracks this year and this one’s no different and also follows the theme of impending doom. There’s intricate, clockwork synths throughout the choruses and springy guitars elsewhere which compliment each other perfectly. ‘It’s Here Tonight’ has instrumentation which is pliable and even rubber-like, only kept grounded and in place by the substantial vocals with story-telling lyrics throughout. - Mix It All Up