Julian Carax is an intriguing character. There’s very little information about him on his MySpace page or anywhere else for that matter.What I can tell you is that Julian is currently resident in Paris (yes, the one in France) but he’s headed for Canada at some point in the future. He’s also a rather talented musician. Like many of the other artists I find via MySpace/Virb/etc, Julian plays most of the instruments on his EP, Turnpike.

We hear so very little from European artists that it’s refreshing to hear that French accent, and Julian’s quirky phrasing. The title track to Turnpike is a low-key acoustic number which is heavy on piano and bass, with a quasi-military snare pattern. For my mood this evening, Turnpike is quite ambient and relaxing, an excellent chill-out track.

Under The Sun follows in the same vein. Julian’s vocals again have an awkward charm about them, and the harmonies are delightfully different. How High The Moon hints at a darker side to Carax’s work. In contrast to the other two tracks, it’s a much more haunting and atmospheric track, helped in no small part by a maudlin piano motif and increasingly chaotic guitar feedback effects.

If I could offer Julian one piece of advice, it’s that we need to know more about what motivates him. I’d love to know more about what inspired him to put these songs together and how those ideas became reality. What do you say, Mr Carax?

You can download and listen to Julian’s other work (for free) via his main website.