Julia Jacklin
“The Hardest Thing”
4AD (available via Bandcamp)
Julia Jacklin is a big deal back home in Australia.
Some of that fervor is starting to spread to the states now, too, thanks to her signing to the big-time credibility label 4AD and her gorgeous new single “The Hardest Thing.”
Jacklin’s singing is layered over well-produced indie rock that sounds like it was pulled straight from the flannel-coated '90s. It’s best described as music stylized out of the Liz Phair-assiance, which is essentially a lineage of mainly women musicians following in the footsteps of Phair’s indie rock masterpiece “Exile in Guyville.”
This is a different generation, however, with different perspectives and voices.
The lyrics are vulnerable but the guitars are crunchy. That stays the same. But while the musical arrangements and style certainty ain’t groundbreaking or reinventing the mold, Jacklin’s songwriting stands out and speaks to her strength as an artist.
The hardest thing to do / is believe it when you say, "I love you"
The hardest thing to do / is stick around trying to convince you
As with any great songwriter, it’s in Jacklin’s delivery where you buy into every word she’s singing. There’s a vulnerability there that brings you in as a listener and into her world.
It’s the third single from her upcoming release, “The Gem,” due out Sept. 25.
Can’t wait to step inside this whole world of a record after a taste of “The Hardest Thing.”
