I know it has been a while since my last blog post. 498 days, or 71 weeks and 1 day, or 16 months and 10 days. My absence was not scheduled, nor was it intentional. Like the seasons, I can say that I am here to stay, but please expect changes and possible hiatuses.
Coming back to blogging, I did not know what my first post back could or should be. On my way to work, I was notified of a Reddit post from the JulieBand subreddit. The post read, “My Anti-Aircraft Friend is 2 years old today!” Immediately, I knew what my returning post would be about.
Oh Julie where do I start?
A band that I have covered on this site before. The band that got me into the world of alternative rock. The band that I watched open for Faye Webster at The Anthem in D.C., knowing absolutely nothing about them, only to become enamored by the massive destructiveness of their set.
If my memory serves me well, Keyan Pourzand’s tube amp blew out and caught on fire. That was July 24th, 2024. Fast forward 655 days to May 10th, when I attended their joint tour with Freshwater in Richmond, where bassist and vocalist Alex Brady had a similar malfunction with her bass guitar.
When I first saw them play in D.C., this album wasn’t even released yet. It wouldn’t be until two months later that they would release one of the most chaotic, intimate, and nostalgic albums I have ever heard.
𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙰𝙻𝙾𝙶𝚄𝙴
The album opens with Brady’s voice as the first sound we hear. Pourzand’s guitar and Lee’s drumming soon follow her soft singing, almost as if every instrument is racing against the others. “𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙰𝙻𝙾𝙶𝚄E“ is our first real taste of what is to come.
We are also introduced to themes that will reappear throughout the project. Brady touches on what I interpret as femininity, insecurity, and intimacy:
I don’t feel sexy
I don’t feel amused
But I will try to undress you
Tethered to the wall
We also experience the stop-and-go nature of Julie’s music that I value so much. The final minute collapses into pure chaos. Not chaos for the sake of being loud, but the kind that feels cinematic, like watching the protagonist fight the final battle of a movie. Except here, we’re only on track one.
Pourzand’s guitar eventually finishes the track in a cloud of feedback, bleeding perfectly into what comes next.
𝔱𝔢𝔫𝔢𝔟𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔱
“𝔱𝔢𝔫𝔢𝔟𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔱“ is one of my favorite tracks on the entire project. It starts with a captivating guitar riff from Pourzand, backed by Brady’s bass. Then, almost in a split second, Lee brings his drums into action and we’re thrown directly into the loud, grungy world of noise rock that Julie thrives in.
This is one of my favorite Julie songs to listen to, but maybe even more so to watch live. That split second where they step on their RAT distortion pedals and everything erupts is like a drug to me. There is truly something to be said about Pourzand’s guitar tone throughout this album. His guitar doesn’t always feel like a guitar. Sometimes it feels more like another voice in the band.
This is also the first time on the album that we hear Pourzand sing. One of my favorite things about Julie is the duality between his and Brady’s voices. Brady’s vocal direction and lyricism often feel softer and more feminine, while Pourzand brings something darker and almost uncomfortable to the music.
For whatever reason
It wears your head
You lost me now
And I don’t know if you would know
Your smoke-filled room
It brings me down
The band has said that their lyrics are open to interpretation and don’t always have some concrete meaning behind them. Maybe that’s exactly why I enjoy trying to find one. When you’re pumping these songs into your ears 24/7, eventually the words start becoming your own.
Pourzand’s second verse sounds to me like someone finally recognizing the condescending way their partner speaks to them. There is frustration in it, but also a strange sense of distance.
It seems to me
That you’ve gotta dumb it down
For me to know it now
It’s a lot like you, furthered
Action to call for you take
You’re so, you’re so, alone
𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵
“𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵“ begins with a jumping bassline from Brady, followed shortly by Pourzand’s almost frantic guitar strumming and Lee’s rhythmic drumming.
Brady’s lyricism really shines here. I hear the song as her witnessing a toxic relationship from the outside. Maybe it’s happening in public. Maybe it’s between two friends. Whatever the situation is, there is this feeling that she sees something wrong happening in front of her but doesn’t quite know how to intervene. She’s quiet. Uncomfortable. Watching.
Muted
Calm, malaise
Well-rested
Commonplace
Impressive
Dawn, I’ll find a way
Following Brady’s account, the song breaks open and Pourzand’s guitar takes control alongside Lee’s drumming. It’s one of my favorite instrumental breaks on the record, which is saying something considering how many incredible breakdowns this album has.
Eventually, everything falls back down.
For the first time on the album, we hear Pourzand and Brady sing on the same track. That duality I mentioned before becomes even more apparent here. I interpret Pourzand’s verse as coming from the same outside perspective as Brady’s, except now the observation becomes more confrontational. Someone isn’t giving enough. Someone else is paying the price for it.
You should
Give in little effort
‘Cause while you sit and drink yourself
You never would have let her
And then the song explodes again.
The final break is absolutely insane live. The way Pourzand manipulates his guitar feedback while Lee’s drums crash underneath it is one of those moments that reminds me why I became obsessed with this band in the first place.
And somehow, we’re only three songs in.
Part 1 of 3. More tomorrow.
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