For the better part of a decade, Juice Webster has turned a very particular kind of self-scrutiny into song – from 2019's You Who Was Myself through 2021's More Than Reaction to her last record, JULIA.
Her new album for Melbourne label Cohort, Kind of Fantasy, borrows its name from a song about clocking yourself performing a version of you that isn’t quite real.
That title track was where the whole thing cracked open.
“Writing the song Kind of Fantasy was the first time I’d actually put words to that feeling and, it sounds cheesy, but that song really opened things up for me,” Webster says. “It made me realise that all these other songs I’d written were exploring a similar thing that was manifesting in different ways, so it made a lot of sense for me to call the album Kind of Fantasy as well.”
Juice Webster – Kind of Fantasy tour
20 November – The Junk Bar, Brisbane
21 November – Lord Gladstone Hotel, Sydney
22 November – La La La’s, Wollongong
28 November – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
Where JULIA sat in stiller territory, this one carries more grit and unrest – though Webster is quick to push back on the idea she was chasing gloom for its own sake.
“There are some darker tracks on this record for sure, but it’s not a sound I was chasing for the whole album,” she says. “It was important to me that the record had elements of hope sprinkled throughout, as well as softer and more quiet moments.”
Steering all of it was Simon Lam, the producer who has shaped nearly every Webster release to date and who splits his time between Kllo and records for the likes of Phoebe Go.
“Beyond being an amazing talent with a natural intuition, Simon is incredibly dedicated,” Webster says. “I’m always inspired by Simon’s ability to work through roadblocks and see things through.”
She’s also keen to credit guitarist and sound engineer Theo Carbo, a fixture of Melbourne’s improvising circles, who turned up when the album needed a jolt.
“I must also mention my friend, Theo Carbo, who recorded with us in the early stages, but also did some additional production on this record and breathed new life into it when we got stuck,” she says.
Wrapped around the songs is a full visual world, built alongside artist Joey Clough.
“Joey is a very feelings based creative, so it was important to him that all the visuals felt right against the music,” Webster says. “I think the visual world has fed back into the music in helping me find more of an identity in the live space, like how I want to dress and how I want the stage to look.”
All of it is rooted in one city. Webster made the album at home, among friends, and doesn’t try to prise the work apart from the place.
“The people and community are everything,” she says. “We have such a strong music scene and community so it’s hard to deny the influence of the city.”
A run of shows lands close to release, with a band assembled to give the record its edges in a room.
“I want there to be moments that feel like it’s all going to fall apart, and moments of quiet hope,” Webster says. “I want people to leave the shows with a full heart, a record and a t-shirt.”
For more information, head here.
