In late 2018, For Folk’s Sake lauded Julia King upon the release of her single, ‘Cannonball’, for being a genuine article as far as her billing as folk fusion took her. Her take on the Americana genre transports listeners into a culmination of folk, soul, rock, and pop stylings, and she’s been able to ride that electric wave onwards into the powerful ‘Lovers Lament’. Opening with a piano riff that wouldn’t feel out of place in Aretha Franklin or Fats Domino’s wheelhouse, the bluesy torch song starts off strong and keeps on powering ahead. At its center is King as a frontwoman, commanding the song’s old-school R&B groove with relative ease, her whiskey warm vocals carrying the arrangement cooly forward.
The ballad is the second single from off of King’s forthcoming debut full-length, which she is aiming to have released during the summer of this year. Perhaps to seal the deal on the “genuine article” statement, King says, “No one wants to listen to you cry, but they will listen to you sing about it. And, if you’re any good, you won’t be the only one with tear drops in the end. It’s not just about making people cry, but making them feel the music. If I write about it, it’s coming from a place of knowledge and understanding. I’ve been through it or I’ve felt it.”
https://soundcloud.com/msjuliaking/lovers-lament
Words by: Jonathan Frahm (@jfrahm_)