Travis Meier
Weather metaphors are abundant. Some common ones include being as happy as the sun, crying raindrops, or being as irritated as a nimbus cloud. No better example of someone who went from a “Johnny rain cloud” to a jubilant cumulus than Julia Floberg on her latest album, Two Roads to Nowhere.
Julia is a cellist and singer-songwriter who started playing music when she was five. She started singing and songwriting in her 20s, eventually also learning the mandolin and guitar. As if she isn’t busy enough, she is also founder and manager of Delphia Cello Quartet, a Mestifonia cellist, and a member of Lady Spruce.
Two Roads to Nowhere was released to a packed crowd at the Icehouse on May 12th in Minneapolis. The show began with the opening track, “Cold and Weary.” It sounded something like a heavier take on her previous album, Aporia. The heavy cello melody grabbed the crowd’s attention, making it seem like we were in for some heavy, depressing stuff.
Instead, the clouds quickly cleared. Floberg is a non-traditional folk cellist who is a Swiss army knife on stage. She told the story of her new album while switching between the cello, mandolin, and guitar. Her happy-go-lucky folk sound proved that the striking beginning was an anomaly, as she touched on happy moments in her life throughout the night.
She played her hit “Dreamin’ ‘Bout You” and “Chasing Minnows,” which is my personal favorite track off the album. She closed with a very personal song, “Ruth.” The chorus will never allow you to say the name Ruth normally again, as it forces you to sing it like Julia: “Ru…oo…th.”
Julia’s new album is a dramatic 180 from her freshman release. She has stepped away from a traditional cellist/opera style and added her own refreshing folk twist. Her new material will help anyone shake off the rain cloud as they tap their feet.
If you want to see Julia in concert, she will be performing hits off her new album, along with Mary Bue, at Aster Café on July 5th. The show is 9 pm with an $8 cover at the door.
Where: Aster Cafe, July 5th
When: 9pm
Cost: $8
Click here for more or to buy tickets.
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