Mustard Service, "Paradise" tour sets on Houston's Skyline
Article and photographs by Mariah Longoria
Photograph by Mustard Service / LPR Agency
On September 27th 2026 Mustard Service stopped at White Oak Music Hall in Houston Texas for the last stop of their tour for the recently released album, Paradise. With lyrics like “And though it kinda hurts, I always thought we’d be first. I even bought a ring, a rise, a fall.” and “We used to live here. We used to write on the walls. You died on a leap year, and I wasn’t far behind at all.” There's no doubt that Paradise is one of their most personal works of art yet. With Marco Rivero Ochoa on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Leo Cattani on keys, bass, and backing vocals, Adam Perez on drums, and “Yucky” on bass and guitar, Mustard Service brought their mixed genre music to life.
The night started off with a loss of power to the instruments from the venue, but soon enough, in under 2 minutes, the show was back on with “Late Night Drive” from their 2023 album “Variety Pack.” The crowd immediately warmed up to the zest-pop band, gathering closer to the stage, feeling comfortable in a pool of strangers after the opening bands encouraged them to introduce themselves to anyone next to them. The band left no room for talking in between songs, flawlessly transitioning from one song to the next. Instead of talking, longer breaks were met with synchronized stretching for the crowd. About 90% of the crowd knew when and how to stretch. When to turn to one side, when to turn their hands from one side to the other, and when to lift their arms up and put them down. It was almost like a scene from Midsommar, where everyone shares the same movements and feelings.
Finally about three fourths into the set, the stretching breaks were replaced with a talking break. Marco took this time to thank the openers for playing with them for 6 weeks, had everyone sing happy birthday to their friend Nicole who turned 25, and thanked their tech and shouted out his musical project Real Live Animals. After all that, they asked for the house lights to be turned down so the crowd could illuminate the stage themselves with their phone lights. Before “Pleasantries (With Your Lover)” began, Marco decided to give one last thanks to the most important people there that night, the crowd.
For the last song of the night, Garrett from Manwolves who opened for Mustard Service was brought out to play saxophone with the rest of the bands and crew joining soon after him to jump around the stage. Taking another moment before “The Dominoes” started, Marco begged into the microphone saying “This is the last song. Please don’t ask us to do an encore. We don’t have one. When we leave, please don’t chant Encore! Encore! Because that’s gonna be really embarrassing for the both of us.” Funnily enough, there ended up being an unexpected encore song that the band hadn’t played at all that tour, making the last show of this tour even more special.
Mustard Service brought a sense of comfort and, dare I say, Paradise to Houston that could never be replicated. I left the show with a new found love for the band and a sweet treat from the ice cream truck that was parked outside the venue when we left. To Mustard Service: thank you for sharing such intimate moments with your audience. Letting it be known that it’s okay to show your vulnerable side and get personal is so important to everyone that your music reaches.
