Good things come to those who wait. It’s been a tumultuous eight years in the music biz since the release of Julia’s last record Newborn Alien Haze: a buoyant post-modern meld of soul, pop and techno which AMPLIFIER referred to as having the “emotional intensity of Lisa Germano and the controlled warmth of Beth Orton.” Now with guitarist Knox Chandler (Psychedelic Furs, Dave Gahan), and producer/drummer Anton Fier (Paul Schaeffer’s CBS Orchestra, Golden Palominos) on board, Brown’s new batch of reflective songs are rendered harder and decidedly darker. Chandler’s eerie guitar accompaniment is everywhere - akin to his ancestors Mick Ronson and David Gilmour - coloring Julia’s lovelorn lyrics with legato shards of feedback and linear countermelodies. Fier’s spare production and (no-frills back-beat) affords Brown space aplenty to flex her vocal chops which often display an affinity for traditional folk and torch song jazz especially in “Puer Aeternus,” and “London Days.” Gahan/Depeche Mode fans will certainly appreciate the programmed poly-rhythms and atonal guitar-play of “Pieces of the Species” and the plodding (yet firm) orchestral gloom and doom of “1000 Paper Princes.” “In Hurt’s Arms” is downright cheerful by way of a few major chords and intermittent ascending piano, guitar, and bass motifs. Measured and brooding, Strange Scars comes highly recommended for fans of latter day Peter Gabriel (Up), Fiona Apple, and Cat Power.
--Tom Semioli [July 12, 2008]
