just mustard

We heard the rumours - We saw them live - We talked about them - a lot.

We thought about them - a lot. We saw them live again. Then we heard that Partisan had signed them for their second album & we knew this band were set to be a new long term love for many of us. If you paid attention to our mid-year picks, it’ll come as no surprise to you that this ended up in the top spot at the end of the year. It’s been a constant on the stereo, in our ears, in our hearts & in our conversations & when we put it to the staff vote, it was clear that these 5 friends from Dundalk, Ireland, really did cut the mustard for us in 2022.

A series of industrial-shoegaze atmospheres, each of which envelops its own distinct sonic planet orbiting in the Just Mustard universe - the band’s second album is a masterpiece of insistent & powerful yet somehow subtle & elusive noisescapes. It’s as if the tunes are merely implied rather than discernibly, overtly conveyed. The dreamy textures of their arthouse goth demand your physical & emotional attention. They gradually intensify, swell & eventually burst, sending reverberations through your whole being.

Coursing with the same thick, dark blood as the brooding early output of fellow countrymen The Murder Capital & Fontaines D.C. (with whom they have toured) & frequently recalling a more muscular take on Cranes’ shoegaze, their mournful, grainy tones glisten with a light dusting of romance. Modestly remarkable at every turn, the band build strikingly deviant music where every instrument is utilised in a non-traditional manner & is pushed to its limit & every instrument is crucial to the mix. Guitars are distorted almost beyond recognition. Strings are played as elongated notes with bows, the instruments shriek & wail; all sorts of whirring / mechanical / horror / techno / metallic noises are made; there are pedals galore in action (the gadget geekery that this encourages at their shows is a beautiful sight to behold). The bass often operates at the forefront, leading the affray. The whole drum kit is made use of - skins, rims & all - providing a framework for their otherwise untethered visions . And above it all, there’s the soaring / submerged / melodic / ethereal vocals that pull everything together & hold it all in place. It’s a formidable achievement to create a body of work which sounds so molten, unconfined & inexorable when it’s self-evident that every note, every sound, every space is purposive & meticulously measured - played out exactly as intended.

“A record that pivots between brutal sonics & stunning beauty...right from the start, Just Mustard have felt like an uncompromising entity” - Clash

"The band have said they want ‘Heart Under’ to feel like the experience of driving through a tunnel with the windows down. Through deliciously inventive musicianship they’ve created something even more thrilling.” - NME