Julia

Julia were a four-piece (five at the beginning of their tenure) band from San Diego, California. They were active from 1993-1996. Their sound is comparable to that of other San Diego bands at the time (Drive Like Jehu, Heroin, Portraits Of Past, etc.), who were taking post-hardcore (Fugazi & friends) influence and giving it a very intense, cathatic, "emotional" sound (Thus the term "emo" being often applied, though I tend to associate it moreso with twinkly and SDRE-ish bands. But you know, labels don't matter, all music is emotional, etc.). These were the bands who essentially pioneered "screamo". This is not to dismiss Julia as one of many, of course. Julia featured beautifully executed dynamic drumming, and a bass sound that altered between a haunting rumble and clean, melodic, bass lines. The guitar(s) would switch between quiet arpeggios to powerful octave chords to bludgeoning dissonance. The vocals were screamed/sung to the point of breaking, and they lyrically touched upon very personal experiences and feelings. What I personally like most about this band are the moments that the whole band sounds like they're on the verge of collapsing due to an emotional breakdown of sorts. Powerful stuff, and all of this combined created a truly amazing sound that one can only refer to as "Julia".

Very little is known about these guys, therefore their legacy lies almost entirely in the most important thing: the music itself. They are an absolutely amazing band that deserve to be recognized for years to come. If you're starting with them, I suggest you go with their sole LP, which is self-titled.

Julia (1993)

1. 3 Year Old Child (Minority)

2. Song In A

...At The Window Of Vulnerability (1994)

1. Holding Back

2. Steve's Song

3. My Sister

Julia (1994)

1. Wait Mom And Dad

2. Tongue Biting

3. Peripherals

4. Scarification

5. Venus Be

6. Trigger Happy

7. Charge Versus Change

8. End

Kathy (1995)

1. Kathy

2. Second Song On A Saturday

    

Sunshine/Julia (1996)

1. Sunshine - Astral Love

2. Julia - Our Last Song 

Kathy Revisited (1998)

1. Second Song On A Saturday

2. Kathy

Note: This is a reissue of Kathy. The main difference is that the sides are inversed. They also sound slightly different, but this is more likely because of how they were ripped then them being remastered (which I don't think they were).

Compilation Songs

"Forge In Wind" is from the All The President's Men comp released in 1994 by Old Glory Records. This was the last release to feature guitarist Steve Miller (he also played on their first two releases).

"Untitled" is from We've Lost Beauty (A Compilation for Christopher), released in 1996 on File Thirteen Records in dedication to the memory of 16-year-old Christopher Horne, who died in a car accident. It appears that he had a profound effect on those within the music community at the time. 

"I Will Not Be Ignored" is from the Eucalyptus comp released in 1996 by Tree Records.