Golly, an actual review of MOTEL: “From the very first notes, Julia’s voice took me…what a voice! so visceral , so convincing .. a stunning power of evocation, Julia makes these songs sound so true …there is such an authenticity in her voice …
The soundscape is such a pleasure …her voice , the guitars, and the steel guitar ..that killing steel…
excellent album ..
merci for this musical gem…”
– Mike “The Frenchy” Penard, ISA Radio
It’s been almost 6 mos since “Motel” debut and it’s still going strong on Stingray in Canada and spinning in the Netherlands!
“Motel” debuted at #41 out of 50 on this weekly Roots Rock Music Chart. Not too sure what it means exactly except that my album doesn’t suck! Yay!
Also, my radio promoter got a Stingray Network station in Canada to spin “Motel” so 5k-10k folks got to hear it last week!
Apparently they dig “Motel” somewhere in Spain cause this internet station TME.FM gave it 36 spins in a week! I say they must be short on material but my promoter says that’s a defeatist attitude.
I am a professional live music performer. I play live music all over the northern Virginia region. I perform at wineries, breweries, restaurants, bars, special events, and private parties. I am very good at what I do. This is because I have been playing live music for over 30 years, all over the place, in all kinds of bands, in different countries. I started out playing guitar for sheer love of it. I learned to play every Bowie song, every Elton John song, every Who song, every Beatle song, every Rolling Stone song, every Motown song, just because it delights me so much to figure out a song and sing the hell out of it.
After years of trying to sound like David Bowie or Paul McCartney, I began to sound like myself. I have discovered my own voice, and the power of a passionate, honest delivery. I know that a public places folks are going to want to hear their favorites – Brown Eyed Girl, Wagon Wheel, Take it Easy – and of course I play them to the best of my ability. But what I truly love to perform live are the songs folks have forgotten about, or haven’t heard in years. I love to play “Operator” by Jim Croce, “City of New Orleans” by Arlo Guthie, “Tuesday Afternoon” by the Moody Blues, “Low Spark of High Heeled Boys” by Traffic. I believe I could play for 24 hours straight and not repeat a single song.
Growing up, music had a thorough hold on me. My whole life had a soundtrack and my favorite songs are embossed with the images and emotions of the time I learned or first heard the song. When I perform it, all those sights and emotions and memories come pouring out, like lavender preserved in an old envelope. Every song is a capsule that spools forgotten places and feelings. I smell rainy days and elementary school, I see my sister in a hippie dress, I see sunset light spilling across a wood floor, I remember sunburn. Nothing brings on these powerful visions playing the music into which they were encoded.
I play live music to share those powerful feelings with others. They may not see what I see, but they hear in the subtle depths of my voice that some kind of treasure is found.
