julie - my anti-aircraft friend

Racking up tens of millions of streams before releasing a full-length album, it's fair to say julie's debut record is hotly anticipated. 'my anti-aircraft friend' has been in gestation since 2019, growing alongside the trio, who formed the group in their teens. It's an evocative title, apt for a tracklist that champions contrast and contradictions. julie showcase an experimental alternative sound, with scuzzy grunge and shoegaze influences making themselves known.

Opening with 'catalogue', Alexandria Elizabeth's lighter-than-air vocals wind a breezy path against fuzzy guitar hooks and crashing percussion. "I don't feel anything now," she laments against the sound, her voice so calm it's almost eerie, throwing down that dark underlying thread of existential angst that weaves its way throughout the record.

Lead single 'clairbourne practice' is a true stand-out, weaponising gaps of silence as effectively as noise. Here, Elizabeth and Keyan Pourzand are stuck in an eternal dialogue that can never be resolved, both saying the same thing but never truly being heard by the other. Their voices blend beautifully in this track and throughout, almost melding into a singular entity.

julie see themselves not just as a band, but as an art collective, due to each member's interdisciplinary talents. Enigmatic yet authentic, 'my anti-aircraft friend' certainly oozes an art school cool, seemingly effortless in its delivery.