Just Mustard in Nottingham, UK - 2022.06.01

◡̈ Lia Qin
Sep 9, 2022
2 min read

Updated: Dec 18, 2022

Words & Photos by Lia Qin

A week on from the release of their second album ‘Heart Under’, Irish’s insanely talented Just Mustard stopped by Nottingham Rough Trade for a little record store show & signing on 1st June and I simply couldn’t miss it – what a way to start a new month.

Having the privilege of seeing Just Mustard a few times when they supported Fontaines D.C.’s Europe tour earlier this year, I listened to and enjoyed some of the new tracks without knowing the titles; I was very excited to hear them live again with a room full of people who loved this album and were only here to see Just Mustard.

The set started with ‘23’, a perfect lead-off track in my opinion; Mete (guitar) successfully grabbed everyone’s attention with a swirl of guitar noise that was made by a bow instead of a plectrum; followed by Katie’s enigmatic vocal and then the rest of the band joined, leading the listeners into the world they created. One of my favourite thing about this show was that throughout their set, the sounds of the instruments bounced between walls; I don't remember being able to hear it (THAT obviously) at other Just Mustard shows I've been to.

Despite not having fancy lighting and visuals, Just Mustard seems to have the ability to build this enveloping atmosphere as soon as they start playing. There was little-to-no crowd interaction; not simple greetings or even accidental eye contact with the crowd. And I’m not here to complain. In fact, anything else might disturb Just Mustard’s music: ethereal, dreamy, mysterious and uncompromising.

The crowd was still and solemn during the show, but they were not as calm as they presented themselves when it was time to meet the band. Considering their stage presence, it’s hard to imagine what would a meet & greet with Just Mustard be like. However, they were just normal people; five musicians who were happy to see so many fans purchase a copy of their album to show the love and support. They prepared stickers and badges as free merch, took their time to talk to people and take photos, as well as offered signed posters to some lucky fans.

As much as I enjoyed the show, I wish the set was longer: there were only 7 songs! However, I understand Just Mustard didn’t want to exhaust themselves as they had just come back from the US tour with Fontaines D.C. and were in a middle of a very busy festival tour. I’d like to think of this record store show as a nice little teaser of their upcoming UK headline tour in September, which I will definitely attend.