Fourteen years after the laudable debut from JULIE CHRISTMAS, The Bad Wife, she of the many projects and of the many voices returns with Ridiculous And Full Of Blood.

With a backing band is composed of members from CULT OF LUNA, CANDIRIA and KENMODE (as well as others), ‘Not Enough’ begins, tribal, percussive and ritual, a “calling up” of spirits before drifting into trip-hop/electro momentarily, more reminiscent of the singer’s past than much found here. Tom Tierney’s ever-present keys take the lead for much of ‘Supernatural’ cementing, as they will come to throughout Ridiculous And Full Of Blood, how much a part – how very vital – they are to what this album is. Think PORTISHEAD with a honed edge, FIONA APPLE full to the brim and spilling over.

‘The Ash’ drags, heavy and lurching, almost too weighty to keep any forward motion…and yet it does, and the seas of feedback and snarl from the guitars, the multi-faceted voice of CHRISTMAS, the rhythm section being dragged along (possibly against its will) to the song’s conclusion only add to the ability of the song to draw you in. After ‘Thin Skin’, ‘End Of The World’ is a centerpiece once removed, falling near the middle of the song order, yet captivating, and it’s clear her time with CULT OF LUNA has served her well, opened yet another door for her. COL’s Johannes Persson adds his bellows to this one, and the whole track – even at under six minutes – is lent an air of the epic.

Propelled by bass and drums, ‘Silver Dollars’ also boasts a chorus more infectious and breathier than the majority of what passes for modern pop these days, and there’s even a slight prog-rock flirtation in the vocal arrangement. I’m hearing some Jon Anderson here. The noise rock past of some of the members gets its shine time in ‘Blast’ and leads into the finale of ‘Seven Days’.

Play Ridiculous And Full Of Blood for your MIKE PATTON and DIAMANDA GALAS fans. Through it all, entwined and soaring, screeching passion and sultry slinkiness, baring her soul is JULIE CHRISTMAS. Because she doesn’t know any other way to do things.
Worth the wait.
Review By: Lord Randall

JULIE CHRISTMAS
Ridiculous And Full Of Blood
Red Crk