You Make Me is the debut single from Julia Dorry, who was born and raised in Berlin but now calls Aotearoa her home. This four-minute-long number is all about the vocals, which are front and centre at all times, placed against a piano for the most part but with a nice full band bringing in additional elements. This never sounds like a modern number, but instead hearkens back to the Eighties as it brings in elements of Tamla-style soul and Sade soft jazz.
Jeff Arantes has displayed a masterclass of production, ensuring the arrangement is full of space which really allows Julia’s vocals to shine as they are very much the heart of everything we hear.
Somewhat surprisingly the song comes to a complete stop at 2:30, where we get a nice bridge and some delightful solos where Julia takes the opportunity to throw her voice around and display her wonderful range and control.
This is a song which feels as if it is aimed more for the live environment than the studio, and there is a certain amount of repetition which means it does not always work quite as intended, but the pace allows Julia to really shine and her vocals are sublime. I certainly look forward to hear more from her in the future.
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About the author Kev Rowland
From 1990 – 2006 I ran Feedback fanzine in the UK, writing about bands that were rarely covered in the mainstream press, many of whom were in the underground scene. I built close ties with many British Progressive groups in particular, including writing the newsletter for Freewill, getting gigs for Credo and writing the introduction to Galahad’s OCMDII compilation. I reviewed literally thousands of cassettes and then CDs from bands from throughout the world, and was lucky enough to interview many of them. During this period I also contributed to the French progzine Acid Dragon, wrote for the music newspaper Rock ‘n’ Reel and was also involved with the Ghostland website. In 2006 I moved to NZ, and stopped running Feedback (which was then renamed Amplified after I left, at my request) having produced over 80 editions with more than 11,000 pages of print and heaven knows how many reviews
More by Kev Rowland
Gig Review: Crushfest @ The Tuning Fork, Auckland – 07/07/2023
Single Review: Love and War
Single Review: All This Time
Single Review: Sons of Savages
Gig Review: Stray Dogs @ AUX, Auckland – 26/05/2023
Gig Review: Turkey The Bird @ The Ministry of Folk, Auckland – 27/05/2023
Single Review: Beautiful Creature
Gig Review: Emily Rice @ Your Local Coffee Roasters, Pukekohe – 24/05/2023
EP Review: Bridge City Crew
Single Review: Your Heart of Gold
Single Review: The Strangest Dream
Single Review: No Funeral Blues
