Get To Know Get To Know… julie
LA shoegaze bringing the ’90s bang up to date.
Hello and welcome back to DIY’s introducing feature, Get To Know… which aims to get you a little bit closer to the buzziest acts that have been catching our eye as of late, and working out what makes them tick.
Part band, part art collective, LA trio julie are at the forefront of recent times’ shoegaze revival, having steadily built a dedicated cult following since the release of their debut single ‘flutter’ in 2020. Their imminent debut album, ‘my anti-aircraft friend’, therefore comes highly anticipated; building on a foundation of tightly-knotted, ’90s-influenced noise with textural density and dynamic precision, its ten tracks pack a sonic heft that truly belies julie’s relatively modest number of members.
Ahead of the LP’s release this week, we caught up with the band’s Keyan Pourzand (guitar and vocals) and Alex Brady (bass and vocals) to find out more.
Who were some artists that inspired you when you were just starting out (and why)?
We bonded over Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine, Nirvana, Swirlies, The Breeders - we liked the sonics of a lot of these acts and were particularly inspired by the unique qualities of their live shows. Also, we were inspired by bands who were popular in LA at the time.
You’re based in LA - what do you think of the music scene there at the moment? Are there any particular artists/venues/promoters/initiatives you’d recommend people check out?
Lots of music in every niche out here, and lots of live bands who are great who don’t have any music released either. You’ve just gotta look for it :-)
Your debut single ‘flutter’ was released back in 2020; four years later, how do you think ‘my anti-aircraft friend’ compares? Do you feel your sound has developed or changed in particular ways? If so, what would you say has influenced such change(s)?
The sound has developed in many ways - partially due to having more time to refine sounds and having access to better recording materials. Working with Sonny Diperri on this record has also opened our minds to a lot of aspects of recording we were never exposed to before. All of our songs are live recorded, therefore we make it a point to be well rehearsed before going in. Tones are honed before and during the recording process, and song structures are worked to get to the best place possible for the song.
In addition to being musicians, you’re all multidisciplinary artists, and both the band’s album/single artworks and music videos are conceptualised in-house. Can you tell us a bit more about the relationship between julie’s sound and visuals? Through both mediums, what do you want to communicate about the band’s identity?
We treat the visuals as just as important as the music - our visual art is usually a culmination of illustrations done by Dillon and design work done by Keyan and Alex. We try to keep the language cohesive while still allowing space to grow as artists, which is a delicate balance. For music videos and other visuals, we try to get to a place where each member feels excited and represented by it - thus, we don’t just make visual components ‘because we have to’ or because it is recommended as a part of a typical album rollout; we want everything to remain genuine…
What’s the one piece of advice you’d tell your younger selves?
None; I think I’d wish my younger self could give me advice now. There’s an aspect of carefreeness that’s been removed by pressure, and by life just being a bit more difficult as you grow up.
Finally, DIY are coming round for dinner - what are you making?
Keyan: Tagine bil hoot, one of my favorite traditional Moroccan dishes. It’s a lovely stew like consistency; fish with ample amounts of olives, olive oil, paprika, preserved lemon, parsley, cilantro, etc. etc.
Alex: I would make homemade bread to accompany the tagine.
‘my anti-aircraft friend’ is out on 13th September via julie/Atlantic.
Records, etc at
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