An Italian-born singer/songwriter based in Manchester, U.K.,
Giulia Bonometti
was founding guitarist of post-punk revivalists
Working Men's Club
before striking out on her own as
Julia Bardo
. Her full-length and
Wichita Recordings
debut,
Bauhaus, L'Appartamento
, was the product of months spent in quarantine in Manchester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Relatedly, themes of isolation, loneliness, love, and homesickness steer the album, which was eventually recorded in Greenwich with her backing band and producer
Euan Hinshelwood
of
Younghusband
. Notable is the set's fusion of modern indie pop and vintage '60s pop, rock, and folk sensibilities, which come together under a voice that bears an uncanny resemblance to
Natalie Merchant
, at least at times. These prominent traits are most evident on a track like the heartbroken ballad "In Your Eyes," which features pure guitar tones and gentle touches of keys and twang behind a particularly timeless melody. The 1980s of
10,000 Maniacs
are more strongly invoked on the bouncier "Do This to Me," which adds a blended saxophone and tinnier MTV-era timbres to the mix. The album's through line, though, is a warm, folk-rock-inflected pop that relies on acoustic and electric guitars and live drums as well as bittersweet melodies and worry. Also included in the lyrics are sentiments like "Love Out of Control" and "It's Okay to Not Be Okay," the latter a midtempo ballad with moaning instrumental backing. The promising debut ends on the brighter "Goodbye Tomorrow," a catchy entry with one of the album's many head-bobbing bass grooves, if lyrics anticipate parting ways. ~ Marcy Donelson