Johnny Was is a track that touches upon the work of Alanis Morrisette and Fiona Apple, while showcasing Jules’ more mature, Stevie Nicks moments. The track comes forth with a very pop-friendly sound, but contains considerable emotional intensity – listeners will be able to pull something from their experience that parallels what Jules sings about during this song.
The titular effort on Black Crow comes forth in a considerably different fashion from the rest of the material on the EP; during this cut, the instrumentation takes on a much more dark and brooding sound. The piano trills interact well with strings to provide the perfect foil for Jules’ soft-spoken and more throaty output. The Game is a very close and cozy effort, with the arrangements being little more than a guitar. It is this vocal/ guitar dynamic that will endear listeners to Jules’ music. I believe that this is how Jules will ultimately sound during a live set. Jules provides her own spin on the classic Leonard Cohen effort, Hallelujah. It is during this cover that listeners will be able to hear the sheer range of Jules’ vocals and the unique tack that she takes. To The Mountains represents the perfect balance between the instrumental and the instrumental sides. While there seems to be a trend on the Black Crow EP to privilege Jules’ vocals, I feel that this dichotomy makes for one of the most memorable tracks on this EP. Visit Jules’ website for additional information, song samples, videos, and links to her varied social media profiles. Here’s to hoping that she will be able to release a full-length sometime in 2014 or 2015.
Top Tracks: Johnny Was, To The Mountains
Rating: 8.6/10
Juliette Jules Black Crow EP Review / 2014 Self / 5 Tracks / http://www.juliettejules.com/ / https://www.facebook.com/juliettejulesmusic