Two decades into his career, Julian Taylor's star is on the rise because of his masterful album, 'The Ridge.' It may have been the perfect album for these times, but a lot of anguish went into writing it.
“When something like that happens to you, I think you just get stunned,” Julian Taylor says on this week’s podcast about the immense loss that planted the seeds for his album, ‘The Ridge.’ “I just started reciting whatever was on my mind on a video on my phone as I walked through the forest. Then I looked at it and was like, ‘Wow, there’s something there.’” Taylor has been steadily releasing music since the late ‘90s, first as a member of the band Staggered Crossing and then with Julian Taylor Band and solo. So, it’s somewhat surprising that in 2020 he put out arguably his best album yet, and definitely the one that has earned him a larger audience and significant critical acclaim. His album, ‘The Ridge,’ which was released shortly after the pandemic began, was born of considerable personal loss, but its warm sonic character and deeply personal lyrics proved to be the right album for the time. It’s certainly one of Mike’s favourite albums of the year. So, in this open and honest conversation, Julian tells Mike about the painful writing process that resulted in ‘The Ridge,’ his experiences growing as a mixed-race kid in urban Ontario and rural B.C. and his family that inspired the songs, hitchhiking across the U.S., the weirdness of playing a drive-in concert, and much more.
Michael Raine is the Editor-in-Chief for Canadian Musician, Professional Sound, and other magazines. He’s a fan of long conversations about music and the music industry.
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