The Just Joans - Romantic Visions Of Scotland (1LP)

The Just Joans' new album Romantic Visions of Scotland finds the Glasgow band in characteristically melancholic form, pairing shambling indie pop with sharp observations on romantic pratfalls and everyday dis-appointments, all delivered with sardonic Scottish wit, fronted by siblings David and Katie Pope, whose wry lyrics and heartfelt vocals remain at the heart of the band’s distinctive sound.

Originally inspired by a grandiose exhibition title spotted on Glasgow buses in 2019 for a show at the Nation-al Museum of Scotland called Wild and Majestic: Romantic Visions of Scotland, the new album arrives six years later as a collection of semi-autobiographical snapshots from the Central Belt of Scotland. Whilst some of the details have been exaggerated for comic (or tragic) effect, the songs are based on personal experience of mundane failings, bitter regrets and missed opportunities that make up an unremarkable life.

1. Think Fast, Make Conversation
2. Here Come The Rugby Boys
3. Limpet
4. Drinking On A Weeknight
5. Back On The Meds
6. The Day We Missed The Train
7. Oh Veronica, How Right You Are
8. Romantic Visions (Prepare For Disappointment)
9. Strictly Presbyterian
10. Everybody’s Moving To Australia
11. Say You’ll Never Leave Me