Ridiculous And Full Of Blood by Julie Christmas
Release date: June 14, 2024Label: Red Crk Recordings
Julie Christmas is a force of nature. With a voice that could pull down the heavens and a stage presence that far surpasses her stature, Julie Christmas has a flawless musical back catalogue and an indomitable varied vocal delivery. It is incredible to think 14 years have passed since the incredible debut album, The Bad Wife, but Ridiculous and Full of Blood wastes no time in reminding just how vital an artist Julie Christmas is. This is a perfect post-metal album with lots of flourishes out of the genre that harness that unique voice and perfect delivery.
In that 14 year gap there has been a very popular musical achievement as the appearance of Christmas with Cult of Luna for Mariner propelled both artists to a plane very few could, or will ever, touch. Along with long-time collaborator John LaMacchia (Candiria, Spylacopa) Ridiculous and Full of Blood also features Johannes Persson of Cult of Luna. Those looking for Mariner 2 can jump straight into ‘End of The World’, or ‘Lighthouse’ to an extent, and be fully satisfied with what is served up. As with The Bad Wife, this album is so much more than covering ground previously trod.
The usual tenacity of vocals rages from the off and ‘Supernatural’ has hooks galore that happily haunt my every moment away from the record. The album is loaded in a post-metal approach but it is certainly coming from through an avant garde lens. Tracks such as ‘Silver Dollars’ shimmer and drip whilst the vocals soar and rage yet are also sorrowful and soft. No two tracks are alike but the coherence comes from more than just the vocals and that is no surprise with the calibre of musicians included here.
I could recommend every single track as something a bit special and really struggle to communicate as to where this album sits in a musical genre sense. However, what I can say is there is no doubt that Julie Christmas is a unique talent and those that are fans will fall in love all over again. Those that are new should more than find something that gives a new experience and any that hate will no doubt agree there is nothing that sounds like Ridiculous and Full of Blood. This is a flawless album which I will be listening to for years, and probably decades to come.
