Julia Biel is an award-winning singer, songwriter, piano player, producer and guitarist whose mellow sound combines an indie-jazz approach with art-pop sensibilities. Her voice and piano playing are featured on Black and White Volume 1, Julia’s fourth release. I have reviewed Julia before and interviewed her (she is one of the women in my next book, commissioned by 8th House publishers), and her voice has an elusive quality which is very engaging.
Black and White Volume 1 is an album of exclusively solo recordings, just Julia Biel and her piano. Along the way, the project comments on the binary concepts of “black” and “white” in what she feels should by now be a post-racial world.
“Because on the level of shared emotion is where everyone connects,” Julia says. “Skin color, background, political persuasion or any other societal construct should have no bearing on our ability to empathize with each other – nor should these things be allowed to deny someone their right to expressing anything less than the full spectrum of human emotion.”
Black and White Volume 1 opens with “Broken Little Pieces,” and straight away there is a tangible difference between this and her last album. Before, Biel’s voice was compared to other vocalists including Amy Winehouse by many reviewers but here it is higher, tighter and individual. There is a rawness about this track with its open framework and singular textural layer underneath, provided by the piano. It’s absolutely captivating, and if I thought I knew what to expect from this new release by Julia Biel, I was wrong, wrong, wrong.
“Diamond Dust” is atmospheric, and the piano dictates the feelings of this track, with a constant rippling, melodic line, varied on occasion but always constant, supporting the haunting, evocative vocals. “A Room With a View – Interlude 1” is a 20 second, eight chord break leading into “The Wilderness,” which is emotive and set over a varying 6/8, 3/4 set up on the piano, adding intrigue and interest to the number. The lyrics tell the tale of changing love, the dreams we have and the sense of being chased.
“Three Little Words” is gentle, the lyrics telling the tale of working at love and comforting with three little words, the longing to hear them and the forbearances of love. It’s a well structured track with lovely vocal lines, which vary in the middle section, over solid, gentle piano. “Shh…” begins with birdsong and keyboard, which is subtle, gentle and trinkling. All is gentle and quiet, with a classical-infused piano line and gentle, evocative vocals telling of a time when everything stops, is wonderful and still. It’s a track to chill to, and Julia’s voice is perfect for this number.
“Licence to Be Cruel” begins gently, but don’t be hoodwinked: The lyrics are vapid, offering a contrast to the message in the lyrics – until the broken chords and the subtle fleeting minor fifth, which should give the listener an inkling of the cruelty which the lyrics impose, talking of strikes to the heart, how life is a license to be cruel (“I need to uncover what I might have been before you skewed the picture and I skewed your mind”), over an open piano which is really effective. “Blood is thicker than I want it to be,” she sings. Indeed.
“Little Girl” is given a heartfelt delivery over furious piano lines, and tells of the sense of being alone in a big, scary world, while “Onwards – Interlude 2” is 21 seconds of piano solo. “Say It Out Loud” is a carefully crafted and beautifully delivered song about the importance of trying to discuss what is going on between people, encouraging us to speak up if there is something to say so it can be worked out. Julia Biel’s vocals on this track are wonderful.
“You Could Turn a Rainbow Grey” closes Black and White Volume 1, and it’s a great track to do so. Biel tells the story of someone who can cast a damper across any situation – bringing people down, turning rainbows gray and being the voice of doom. The frustration and despair come across, but I was not sure if there was not also a bit of a sense of humor in this one.
Black and White Volume 1 is great because it shows the development of Biel as an individual. The lyrics are hidden at times by the balance between vocals and the piano, but this detracts only a smidge. In her previous releases, there was a sense of her being careful, tentative even, but here there is not a trace of this.
Julia Biel has become a confident, characterful musician who can deliver numbers with certainty about what she wants to say – and she does. Great listening and a definite fulfilment of Julia’s stated desire to connect emotionally with her listeners.
- James McGowan Ensemble – ‘Reaching Out’ (2024) - December 18, 2024
- Joan Torres’s All Is Fused – ‘Embrace Form’ (2024) - July 14, 2024
- Julian Costello – ‘Vertigo’ (2024) - June 29, 2024
