Notes
New England based singer songwriter Julia Van Daam has always found herself harmonizing a life of eclectic adventures and pursuits. It should come as no surprise then that her debut feature length album "Juntababe" flows between darkly haunting melodies such as "Our Secret" and "Gun", softer, fun-loving tunes like "Ten Vineyard Lunches", and upbeat, blue-eyed funk-pop on "Fruitcake" and "Birthday". The listener is treated to an array of human experience within these twelve tracks as varied and rich as the background of the singer-songwriter herself. Born in Cambridge, MA and Raised in Providence, RI by artistic avant-garde home educators, Julia began playing music by the age of two. BY the age of 15 she had learned to play a variety of classic instruments including the recorder, viola da gamba, violin, cello and piano when her uncle Rob gave her what any future rock star dreams of, a cherry red electric guitar with which, at the behest of her clever mother, she promptly started classical guitar lessons. At this same time she entered into a four year relationship with Trinity Repertory Theater in Providence studying acting and developing her stage presence. By 17 she was playing in coffee houses and clubs around RISD and Brown performing her own music either solo or with a revolving band of area musicians. Music has always been one of the pursuits included in a multitasking lifestyle which has also encompassed legal defense, culinary arts, theater and motion picture production. At 23 after playing her way across the country and beyond, to her mother's native Amsterdam, she began a summer arts program in Lexington, MA fostering and empowering young minds to enjoy the wealth of experience open to them. In 1999 she recorded and released a three song demo entitled "Fruitcake" which got the attention of legendary guitarist Tom Scholz who enlisted her sexy voice for the end of his band BOSTON's single "I Had a Good Time". The title track of the demo "Fruitcake" was featured on a December 2007 NPR "Weekend Edition" article on that loved and loathed fruit-laden holiday loaf inspiring Julia to complete and release her full length album nearly a decade after it's inception. Julia says of her process, "Writing music takes me into a world where anything is possible. I find that anything can be inspirational from an intriguing word to someone's most intimate story. Making this album has been an incredible journey, I feel so blessed to have had these amazing musicians help me create such a diverse project. It has been a marathon labor of love, life and loss. All I can do now is give it over to people and see what the experience becomes." Julia continues to thrive in diversity planning several children's books, motion picture projects and of course more music. She currently lives in Massachusetts with poet Daemeon Pratt and their two black cats Cleopatra and Nairobi.
