SOMETIMES JULIE: Transition

Those familiar with Sometimes Julie’s previous recordings will find their new EP, Transition, to be aptly titled. Their previous five albums were primarily hard-charging alternative and indie rock, leavened with an occasional ballad. The sound was equally defined by Rick Walker’s sharp electric guitar work and Monica Sorenson’s soaring vocals.

This outing is a far more introspective project than they’ve done up to this point. Sorenson’s acoustic piano is featured prominently on most tracks, and the sparse, often acoustic arrangements thrust her voice even more forward in the mix. At the same time, Walker’s guitar is mostly missing from its previous prominence.

And yet, as different as this is, it’s difficult to argue with the results. The music is slower, yet somehow grander. More evocative, often tender, sometimes heartbreaking.

While Sorenson will obviously get most of the attention with this new release, tremendous credit would also seem due Walker for his willingness to step back from the spotlight in the arrangements here. A stubborn ego would have kept things as they were—and would not have led to the emotional resonance in these tracks.

New band members Guilherme Cunha (guitar) and Darko Petrovic (bass), as well as contributors Andy Machin (guitar, mandolin, organ) and Dave Fuller (drums, percussion, cello) help fill out the sound, creating a plush-pile foundation beneath Sorenson’s vocals.

On songs like “Carry Her” and “I Dreamed of You,” the effect of the slower, more acoustic performance, with the carefully layered instrumentation is postively ethereal.

Whether this release marks a change in musical direction or is a one-off change of pace will be determined by future recordings.

But rare is the six-song EP that packs this much emotional wallop, that is so able to stand on its own as an artistic statement.