Martha Davis and the Motels are back… again. Well, it’s nothing more than Martha Davis and a few good musicians. Martha Davis is making a great attempt at bringing back the Motels with a new band and a new sound. We got the chance to see a very intimate performance of the band at the Crash Mansion in Los Angeles. There had to be no more than 50 people at the show.
As far as music goes, it was the same ol’ Motels, except with a cool, modern, indie rock twist to it. They kept it simple with two guitars, bass, drums and keyboard. Now, on the other hand, Martha Davis’ voice was utterly amazing. I’m not quite sure what I was expecting when I walked in the Crash Mansion, but her voice 
is still as good as it was 20 years ago. Their set included a lot of relatively new songs, but also included old hits such as “Suddenly, Last Summer” and “Only The Lonely.” While at the show, there were a few familiar faces on stage and in the crowd. On guitar for the Motels was Gnarls Barkley guitarist, Clint Walsh. Playing bass was Jon Siebels, former guitar player of 90’s alternative band Eve 6. In the crowd was the original drummer of the Motels.
The show was a “CD Release” show for the Motels. They released three new albums…at the same time. This features the classic songs of Martha Davis and the Motels, re-recorded with the new musician line up. Beautiful Life features all new material by Martha Davis. Clean, Modern and Reasonable features acoustic versions of the Motels’ hits.
For more information about Martha Davis and the Motels, check them out online at www.myspace.com/marthadavis.
