Mustard Service is an indie pop band that introduced itself to the world with its 2017 debut album, “Zest Pop” – the term Marco Rivero Ochoa (lead vocals/rhythm guitar), Leo Cattani (keyboard) and Adam Perez (drums) use to describe their unique blend of rock, funk and bossa nova that also incorporates influences from their mixed Latin heritages. Their sophomore effort, “C’est la Vie,” strikes a chord that balances both the pleasantries and arguments with your lover, all wrapped up in yet another lyrically poetic two-five-one. “Variety Pack” from 2023 explores the scary side of telling someone the three words you are never supposed to say. In their latest outing, the artists examine the complexities of wanting to be back with the person who hurt you in the first place.
Like all bad decisions, “Vice City Magic” starts with a track titled “2 AM.” Ethereal synth chords from Cattani fade in to set the daydream (or nightmarish) tone of the entire album. Ochoa sings this song entirely in Spanish and even if you don’t speak the language, his defeated tenor on the line, “No quiero despertar,” traverses the language barrier. While the track is lyrically brief, a critique present throughout the album’s 12 songs, it beautifully captures the waning moments of a one-night stand – the other person is about to wake up and leave while you are still desperately searching for the right way to ask them to stay.
If “2 AM” is the prologue that begs the question, “Big Time” is where our narrator starts to struggle with the consequences of last night’s actions. The song is fun and upbeat, with the rhythmic guitar dividing the measure into 16ths to really push the tempo. This poppy instrumental not only makes “Big Time” fun and easy to dance to, but it also works on a thematic level. Behind the alt-pop rhythms, the lyrics reflect on the pain and suffering brought about by the conflicting emotions of loving the person who hurt you and the struggles of realizing you hurt them too – you could have done better. Where the vocals tell this story of heartache, the orchestration works to numb the pain of what really happened as a means of seducing you back into a relationship you know will “break this heart of mine again, in the big time.”
“Conversation Overtime” falls back on the “stoner vibes” of “C’est la Vie” with its groovy rhythms laid down by Perez on the drums while Ochoa relates love to a nicotine addiction – addiction being a common motif in their discography.
Quite possibly one of Mustard Service’s best songs is the fourth track on “Vice City Magic,” “Going Nowhere.” This song is the thesis to not only their senior album, but also their previous ones. Falling in love with the same person again and again is “heaven and hell combined, making the sweetest wine.” In spite of knowing that pursuing this relationship again is a devastating mistake, you cannot help but fall back into those feelings once more. It’s an addictive, waking nightmare that despite our confidence that this time will be different, this time we will work out – “I can’t make them last.” She’s long gone while you’re going nowhere, just hoping that this time, she’ll go there with you. “Going Nowhere” is only one verse and two refrains of the chorus connected by electrifying guitar riffs. While a second verse or a bridge would be much appreciated to better allow this narrative to breathe, what we do get is still a fantastic deconstruction of the traumatic familiar.
In “Yucky’s Song,” the first lines say it all: “Can’t seem to get it right, man, I just want to fight.” As quick, arpeggiating guitar lines run rampant against the vocals, the drums kick into high gear to emphasize the narrator’s fatal realization – “hope is not enough.” The following track doubles down on these elements as the title alone, “I’m An Idiot,” speaks volumes as to the narrator’s perception of themselves – it is also the only word sung in the chorus, repeated a total of eight times. Additionally, the track ends with a voicemail from some unknown woman, reminding the narrator that she was there for him once, but those days are long gone.
“How Come” is a plucky and way too repetitive tune about the lackadaisical blur of depression and features some great guest instrumentals from the artist JW Francis. “High Roller” is sonically similar to track three but with a somber edge as the electric guitar wails throughout this slow refrain about how love is a gamble. Song eight is also one of the better choruses in this album, as the band goes back to their knack for writing poetic couplets infused with creative metaphors.
“Telephone” features a dance pop feel that contrasts with the pitched-down version of the group’s usually pop-tenor sound. This sonic choice makes their familiar heartthrob lyrics come across as creepy words of a stalker trying to win back someone who has already moved on. “Billy Bob” is instrumentally one of the band’s weaker songs and lyrically discusses a struggle with drug addiction in a less engaging way than on previous albums.
After nine songs of deliberation and self-hate, “Let Me Call You Baby” is that 3 a.m. phone call set up in “2 AM.” A comfortable half-time and slightly out-of-pitch guitar gives the 11th song a subtle unease that sonically creates the quick-stop heart attack of asking her to “Let Me Call You Baby.” As the song fades to a close, the track dies, audio distorts and the tempo gradually slows to a crawl as the narrator watches his tomorrow walk out the door, realizing he will only ever be her yesterday.
“Vice City Magic” couldn’t end on any other track than “There You Go Again.” It’s a happy-go-lucky beat that seems to suggest that, while it’s sad she left you again, be grateful that she was there in the first place – if only for a moment.
While the album overall features a plethora of good songs backed by Mustard Service’s unique psychedelic instrumentals, the narrative, while relatable, isn’t conveyed in a way more compelling than on their previous three albums. “Zest Pop,” “C’est la Vie” and “Variety Pack” utilize poetic lyricism to tell their stories, whereas “Vice City Magic” too often falls back on predictable verses and repetitive choruses.
3.5/5
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Feature Image via Handwritten Records
