Julia Stone, one half of Australia’s brother-sister duo Angus and Julia Stone, dropped her latest solo effort last month. ‘By The Horns’ combines soft folk-influenced instrumentals with Stone’s delicate and silk-smooth vocals which really come into their own on tracks such as the title cut. Produced by Thomas Bartlett (The National), the record also features a cover of ‘Bloodbuzz Ohio’, an unusual but certainly interesting interpretation of the ‘High Velvet’ hit. Stand-out song ‘Justine’ will slowly but surely embed itself in your brain, with Stone’s gentle refrain of ‘I wanna live with you in California’ being a constant presence throughout the track. The fragile ‘I’m Here, I’m Not Here’ is another perfect example of Julia Stone’s talent for crafting feather-light but meaningful folk tracks. Definitely a grower, ‘By The Horns’ is out now.
