<\/p>\n
There are over 1,300 voice memos on Julia Kugel\u2019s phone. The prolific musician, who is best known as part of the punk trio The Coathangers, explains that every fragmented voice memo is \u201cwaiting to be somewhere\u201d whether that\u2019s with The Coathangers, the duo Soft Palms with her husband Scott Montoya, her Suicide Squeeze label supergroup Julia & The Squeezettes, or for her solo work. <\/p>\n
The random snippets come to her in the middle of conversations with friends or, far too often, while riffing during sound check and they get sorted into files. \u201cI\u2019ll file folder them into which project like Soft Palms or is this Julia, Julia or I just started a new band called Animal Self, so maybe it is Animal Self,\u201d she tells Billboard<\/em>. <\/p>\n More from Billboard<\/strong><\/p>\n The collection of memos started during her Coathangers days when each member would bring the recordings to the studio and collaborate. Eventually, some of those recordings felt as though they were Kugel\u2019s alone to express and so she launched Julia, Julia. <\/p>\n Today, Kugel releases her second solo album Sugaring a Strawberry<\/em> (via Suicide Squeeze and her and Montoya\u2019s label Happy Sundays) under her moniker Julia, Julia and the 10-track record is an intimate collection that speaks only for Kugel. Created at their home studio in Southern California, Kugel co-produced the album alongside Montoya, resulting in\u00a0haunting and austere vocals with gentle guitar and an unvarnished sound. <\/p>\n For \u201cthe first [solo] record, I was like, \u2018Oh. I just want to do it by myself, I am so sick of people\u2019 and then by the end of it, I was like, \u2018I need people. I\u2019m so sick of myself,\u2019\u201d she jokes. \u201cSo, on this one, Scott played a lot on it \u2013 percussion and stuff that he\u2019s good at \u2013 but I still get to have final word. This is my exploration of my point of view and what I want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n The album opens lead single \u201cBound\u201d that, with the subtle guitar and the near-whispered lyrics, sounds like the listener is entering a coven with Kugel as she sings \u201cI will be your home.\u201d From there, Kugel continues to draw the listener in with her delicate vocals as she reluctantly reminisces about \u201cA Love That Hurts\u201d or about self-doubt on the smoldering \u201cI Know.\u201d \u201cFeeling Lucky\u201d is a warm respite on a shadowy album that delivers a slick beat tinged with sadness. <\/p>\n Billboard<\/em> sat down with Kugel to discuss her latest solo effort and how she juggles all so many creative projects. <\/p>\n How do you decide what goes on a solo album versus one of your collaborative outlets?<\/strong><\/p>\n The group has to be able to meet and do all that real important band communal stuff. So that\u2019s part of it. With The Coathangers, we live on different coasts, so there has been so attempt to do it virtually, but it is not the same especially after 15 years of doing it the more natural way. <\/p>\n It is whatever I am able to accomplish. With Animal Self, we recorded seven songs and those are being mixed and that will come out as an EP. With Soft Palms, we need to finish up because it is due in September. I just wanted to sneak in some Julia, Julia stuff before all that because it did not depend on as many people.<\/p>\n The way I decide on a project is, if it pops up, I have a rule that I say yes to everything. Everything is a challenge. I produced a record for a band last year and that was super cool. Someone says, \u2018do you want to do this?\u2019 and I\u2019ll be like, \u201cOk, let\u2019s figure it out.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Have you always been a producer or working on the production side?<\/strong><\/p>\n When this band reached out and said, \u201cWe want you to produce our record,\u201d I was like, \u201cDo I know how to do that?\u201d With production, you have to have an opinion and some knowledge of studio and a vision for the band that maybe they can\u2019t see. I\u2019m good at that. I have a diverse background in music, everything from classical to punk, so I see the nuances. So, it was fun for me, but it involves so many people and the production took a really long time. We\u2019re still waiting for that record to come out. <\/p>\n Do you feel you are able to achieve that same outsider\u2019s perspective when you produce your own music?<\/strong><\/p>\n Oh, dude. It\u2019s brutal. I am always critiquing the playing or the singing. I\u2019m not seeing the bigger picture. Which is why it is great to have Scott there. He\u2019s been mixing for so long that he\u2019s able to see the bigger picture. So, yeah. It takes some mediation. I have to leave for a while and touch a flower or something then come back in and pretend I am listening to someone else\u2019s song. Then once the album is mixed and mastered, I don\u2019t listen to it until it comes out. <\/p>\n