my anti-aircraft friend

With an urgent approach not often associated with the style, L.A. quasi-shoegaze combo julie navigate the spectrum between fuzzy girl-boy indie pop and song shrouded in grungy noise. They went viral with the dark yet bouncy debut single "flutter" in 2020 before releasing their first EP, pushing daisies, the following year. That led to a contract with Atlantic for the release of their full-length debut, my anti-aircraft friend, in 2024.

Orange County residents Keyan Pourzand (guitar, vocals), Alex Brady (bass, vocals), and Dillon Lee (drums) were just out of high school when they formed julie. While Brady had sung all her life, they were all self-taught instrumentalists, at least on the ones they play in the group. They started writing songs together as a trio. Released on Stockholm-based label Amuseio AB in early 2020, julie's official debut single, "flutter," collected streams numbering in the tens of millions with its racing tempo and combination of doomy guitar tones, feedback-bolstered dissonance, and duo vocals like ghosts of twee. Themes of death and heartbreak guided their self-released debut EP, August 2021's pushing daisies.

The band made their major-label debut with the single "pg.4 a picture of three hedges" b/w "through your window," which appeared on Atlantic in August 2022. They followed it with tracks including "catalogue" (September 2023) and "clairbourne practice" (July 2024) before the trio's debut album, my anti-aircraft friend, arrived on Atlantic in September 2024. ~ Marcy Donelson