A journey of beautiful transformation
The sound of rushing water pulls you in – then, something like the leg of a rocking chair scraping against an old wooden porch. A lone electric guitar emerges in a cloud of spring reverb. The guitar is joined by bass, then drums, building in unity – until suddenly, a powerful and bewitching voice, like the sirens of legend, cuts through the ambiance – a voice belonging to none other than Julie Odell.
The child of a painter and potter, Odell has lived her whole life surrounded by passionate artists pursuing their crafts. Traveling far and wide in the family van, the New-Orleans based singer/songwriter accompanied her parents to art festivals and craft shows as a child, staring out the window and taking in the ever-changing landscape like an endless movie. It seems like it was destiny, then, for Odell to find her own artistic calling in music. She took up singing, songwriting, piano and guitar, and began performing at open mic nights and opening for hardcore bands in South Louisiana. Later, she formed the psychedelic folk-rock band Giant Cloud, releasing an EP and album on Park the Van. Now, Odell shares a cleverly-written and vivid account of personal growth and transformation in her debut album, Autumn Eve.
Like Romantic poetry, Odell’s songwriting is deep and descriptive and effortlessly projects images on the inward eye. More than just lyrics, her words are true musical poems, using unconventional song structures, odd melodic phrasings, and few repetitions to focus listeners on what is being sung. These interconnected poems form a narrative that tells bits of the artist’s story over a period of several years. The songs deal with love, tragedy, self-acceptance, hope, and most of all, transformation – something the artist experienced a great deal of while writing the album. According to Odell, becoming a mother sparked the most significant emotional transformation of all for her at age 26. “Because I started writing the songs when I was traveling from place to place and working on farms, I felt very foundationless and uprooted,” she says. “There was so much growing I had to do when [my daughter] was born . . . I was just too reckless with my life before that.” Odell says motherhood led her to plant roots, become more understanding of other people and show more compassion to both her current and past self – all changes that keen listeners can pick up on in her lyrics.
Roughly half of the songs were written several years before Odell’s transition into motherhood, while half were written during the process. As a result, listeners experience a few different sides of the artist in a kind of musical coming-of-age narrative that chronicles a great deal of emotional growth from beginning to end.
The music gives the impression of a symphony translated to a familiar indie rock instrumentation – vocals, guitar, piano, drums, bass, and percussion – which stays consistent throughout. Harmonic dissonances, extreme dynamic shifts, unpredictable hits, rubato sections, and tempo changes are aplenty. Instruments sometimes appear in the periphery like subtle brushstrokes, forming an elaborate and textured result, like a musical oil painting. The music is predictable enough to imprint onto the memory, allowing mostly for the lyrical narrative and remarkable vocal performances to take center stage. Beautiful vocal harmonies adorn many of the songs, like “St. Fin Barre” and “Cardinal Feather”, along with breathtaking moments that showcase Odell’s vocal virtuosity. Her powerful, entrancing vocals are full of whimsy, capable of delivering sweet, floating melodies and powerful edginess alike.
All in all, Autumn Eve is truly something to behold – a treasure trove for lyrically-inspired listeners with layers of musical idiosyncrasies and a depth of meaning that easily entices more than one listen. Prioritizing creativity and content over conventionalism, the album is a great one sure to be appreciated by indie rock, folk-rock, and alt-country listeners for years to come. Like the caterpillar she sings about, Odell’s difficult transformation has brought about a very individual and beautiful result.
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