When it comes to the difficult second album, most bands look to consolidate everything they’ve learnt up to that point and go one better. But with , Liverpool-based alt-rock quartet The Mysterines did the opposite: they ripped the carpet from beneath them. They were still teenagers when their “innocent and naive” debut album was released in 2022.
They’ve since toured the States, played stadiums in support of Arctic Monkeys and, as guitarist Callum Thompson says, become different people...
“We’re at different stages of our lives,” he explains. “We wanted to steer the songs in unorthodox ways, and have parts that don’t feel like guitars. This album was more about evoking a certain feeling or atmosphere as opposed to just playing a blues lick.
Atmosphere has always been more interesting to me than who can do the quickest solo; I’d rather make people feel uneasy or happy with the parts I play. The less busy my right hand is, the better.” Guitarist/vocalist Lia Metcalfe admits the band “threw everything” at as they sought to show the world what they were made of.
This time, there is no whiff of ego or flash of performative fireworks. was forged in the heat of the moment. They didn’t dilute ideas by overworking them.
Says Callum: “The more you do something, the worse it gets, especially when you’re trying to orchestrate a feeling with your guitar. The part that came to you initially will always sound better than something you’ve been chipping away .