The multi-instrumentalist duo that comprises Hermitude - Luke Dubber (aka Luke Dubs) and Angus Stuart (aka El Gusto) - were in Japan when Covid became a stark reality. Just making it back to Australia before the borders closed, they quietly slipped up to Angus' place just outside of the Blue Mountain town of Blackheath as the rest of the world went into meltdown. The two holed up together in Angus' childhood home with a pared-back music setup and began a process that was all about taking back control over how and why they make music as Hermitude. As Luke says, "they say the artist is your inner child, so it was like the children were out at play. There were no rules or expectations; we just threw stuff at the wall. It was really fun, which is why we started making music in the first place." A year and a half later, Mirror Mountain was finished. The album acts as a reawakening, a place to draw strength as time goes by.