Reviews

In Black & White

Mustard Plug

Released: Sep 11, 2007
Label: Hopeless Records
Reviewed by: Michelle Stoffel
2 comments

Mustard Plug are kind of like third wave ska superheroes. Equipped with guitars and horns, wearing their skinny tie uniforms, they stand up against the forces of trendiness and influence ska fans and bands world wide. If they had action figures, they could say "We have always played ska, even when it stopped being cool!" That way Mustard Plug and their fans don't need to keep talking about the integrity of the band's unchanging sound. I appreciate that and all, but I'm over hearing about it. Now onto the actual album.

For In Black & White, Mustard Plug returned to producer Bill Stevensen and Colorado recording studio the Blasting Room with the intention of making a sound more similar to Evildoers Beware than their last effort, Yellow #5. This was probably a good move. Although I don't think any Mustard Plug album has been trashed, Yellow #5 probably received the most mixed reviews. I don't know if In Black & White is a true return to form - cause I'm not sure they ever left the form - but I suppose In Black & White is a little more rock than Yellow #5. Irregardless, their sixth album is catchy, fun, and smart.

The choruses are really where it's at here. You'll probably find your head uncontrollably bopping along to each song. Every chorus is sing-a-long friendly: from the bouncy, rhyming chorus of "Hit Me! Hit Me!" to the quick two-tone chorus on "Something New" to the slower, coaxing chorus of "Life Is Too Short." I actually couldn't even single out a favorite here because every song has at least one memorable section. Normally, after the first time I hear an album, I only remember a select few songs that I really enjoyed. With In Black & White, I remembered every song as soon as the chorus started up. The songs were catchy enough to be remembered but distinctive enough to be differentiated.

Lyrically, In Black & White does a great job of keeping its feet on the ground while tackling some political and social issues. The bulk of the album sticks to describing the lives of punk rockers who've been around and seen a lot. Some songs are more personal, and some stretch into more social or political criticism. Mustard Plug never overreaches though and gets overt about any big issues, which is always refreshing.

The only problem for me was with the recording quality. The album sounds really clean: Hopeless obviously put some more money into this release than previous ones. I prefer hearing albums that sound as close to live as possible. Sometimes I think bands spend more time worrying about song construction and production and it comes off sounding a little too neat and tidy. I'm sure the tracks off In Black & White kill live, but on the album they sound a little subdued...only a little though. After all, it's Mustard Plug; nothing's going to subtract too much energy from them, nor is anything going to stop them from making another great record.