Band:	Julie Christmas
Album:	Ridiculous And Full Of Blood
Style:	Alternative metal, Post-metal
Release date:	June 2024

01. Not Enough
02. Supernatural
03. The Ash
04. Thin Skin
05. End Of The World
06. Silver Dollars
07. Kids
08. Lighthouse
09. Blast
10. Seven Days

It’s been close to a decade since we last heard from Julie Christmas, but the time has once again come to revel in one of metal’s more unique voices.

Christmas initially built her reputation while fronting Battle Of Mice, Made Out Of Babies and Spylacopa, before striking out under her own name with 2010’s The Bad Wife, although it was arguably the Mariner collaboration with Cult Of Luna that exposed her to the widest audience. However, there was no immediate capitalization upon the boon that came with Mariner’s success, as studio output ceased from any project with which she was involved. Eight years after Mariner and 14 after her sole standalone release, Ridiculous And Full Of Blood marks the long-awaited revival of Christmas’ solo music career.

Having said that, there’s quite a few people involved in this ‘solo’ album; instrumental collaborators on Ridiculous And Full Of Blood include but are not limited to Cult Of Luna’s Johannes Persson on guitar, Chris Enriquez (Spotlights) on drums, and Andrew Schneider on bass and synths (as well as production duties). The presence of Persson’s vocals (and also Cult Of Luna bandmate Thomas Hedlund behind the kit) on 2 songs might hint at a reprise of Mariner’s vibe, but while remnants of that collaboration can be heard in moments, as a whole Ridiculous And Full Of Blood shares more in common with the unorthodox alternative metal heard on The Bad Wife and in Made Out Of Babies material. However, it’s hard to pigeonhole this new album into any one particular style.

Those unfamiliar with Christmas may be asking what about her warrants the ‘unique voice’ description from the beginning of this review? Well, first there’s her range to consider; she has a relatively conventional yet powerful alternative singing voice in her arsenal, but easily switches into intense, at-times demented harsh screams and shrieks, and imaginatively mixes and/or layers the two. Beyond that, though, there’s so much personality to her voice, which can at a moment’s notice deliver an unnerving shout or high note, not to mention the eerie, childlike approach that she regularly employs (check out “Blast” for an example). Her vocals are distinct in a way that isn’t for everyone, but they’re certainly memorable, and very much remain so on this latest outing.

The album makes an immediate impact with opening track “Not Enough”; it features Laura Pleasants on guitar, and there’s a definite resemblance to Kylesa with its emphasis on percussion, but while the guitars are fairly understated (with a sludge-meets-alt-meets-noise rock style akin to Helms Alee), Christmas ratchets up the layering and intensity of her vocals, until the catchy sung hooks from earlier in the track descend into unrestrained, relentless screams. After this emphatic climax, the record immediately changes tack (a trend throughout the tracklist) and goes towards a more straightforward, anthemic sound on “Supernatural”, although despite the simple verse/chorus structure and the dazzling keyboards, there is a hint of latter-day Cult Of Luna (or perhaps more so Persson’s Final Light collaboration) in the expansive instrumental soundscapes.

From that point on, Ridiculous And Full Of Blood powers on with a motto of ‘expect the unexpected’, whether it be twisted shoegaze (“The Ash”), brattish punk (“Thin Skin”), or whatever “Kids” qualifies as (indie gone weird?). With all these shifts in style, there is the capacity for missing the mark, and in truth, there are several songs on the album that I find myself less engaged with, particularly “Kids”, “Blast” and “Thin Skin”. Still, while the songs themselves don’t do much for me, the vocal ingenuity at least makes them intriguing to listen to.

Those 3 songs I just mentioned are all below 3 minutes; it's arguably on its longer songs that Ridiculous And Full Of Blood shines. Four tracks break the 5-minute mark, and the first of the Mariner reprises, “End Of The World”, is pleasantly brooding and meaty. “The Lighthouse”, however, arguably feels closer to capturing the essence of Cult Of Luna with its dynamic range and patient progression, and for me it’s probably the highlight of the record. That’s not to overlook album closer “Seven Days”, though; as much as the gloomy instrumentation in the song’s opening minutes is perhaps the most stripped-down that the album gets, by the time it’s over, Christmas has unleashed some of the most intense and impressive harsh vocals heard across the whole runtime.

Ridiculous And Full Of Blood is diverse, ambitious and eclectic; that eclecticism might make both individual songs and the album as a whole divisive for certain listeners, but one thing the album can’t be accused of is being forgettable.