Records - The Just Joans

INDIE POP

Problem page pop from a bunch of self-confessed puny losers from Motherwell? It shouldn’t work - hearing them sniff and sigh through bleak, downbeat stories about getting chucked in Strathclyde Park, or feeling they’ve missed their prime when they are still students. But a lovable blend of sleepy acoustic guitars, Brian Wilson-esque harmonies, and west coast sarcasm wins in the end. Named after the Daily Record’s longstanding agony aunt, they sugar coat the self-deprecation and moaning by ripping their pals or throwing in Russ Abbot references. Bittersweet and clinging nostalgically to high school glory days, The Just Joans complain they have past their best, but if they stop greeting, they have plenty to look forward to.

(Claire Sawers)