"Figure 8 " Julia Darling

a Review by Amy Lotsberg Producer of Collected Sounds

Upon first listen to this CD, none of the songs really jumped out and grabbed me.
But I did like her sound.

The second listen I felt I knew these songs already. They seemed to have more of an effect on me on the first listen than I thought. Especially the catchy "Bulletproof Belief" which her web-site says is The Single.

Julia was born in the small town of Plymouth, New Zealand. She later moved to Melbourne, Australia. She started out as a street musician, collecting enough money to pay the rent and eat. The rest of the story is one you've undoubtedly heard before. Street musician gets noticed by a record executive who introduces her to the "right" people and before you know it, she's got a record deal with New York's Wind-Up records. Her CD Figure 8 was released June 15, 1999.

Don't expect just another "girl and a guitar" sound though. There is quite a bit of orchestration on this recording. Complete with cello, autoharp, electric guitar, piano and harp. It is a CD full of sound. There are a few songs that seem to go back to her street days sound, mostly "Closer Look and the hidden track "Lady Blue". Her voice is what really shines though. She has a wonderful sound. She reminds me of Milla (Jovovich, the model-turned-songwriter-turned model).

"I write lyrics about myself and the people around me, focusing on our behavior and the consequences of our actions. As a listener I prefer words and ideas that provoke some sort of curiosity in me and so I try to write the same way."

Posted on January 15, 2000