HUSH • JULIA JOSEPH BEPOP RECORDS BEPOP-1020 With an emphasis on acoustic instruments and ensemble playing, New York-area musician Julia Joseph has fashioned a collection of refined and quietly bewitching songs that blossom beyond the confines of traditional folk to embrace the dynamics of jazz and blues.   Her mellow alto drives the album, inhabiting each song with an assured, sometimes delicate, warmth. Julia has been called an old soul about as many times as she's been called an eternal child and these archetypes find a peaceful coexistence in her sound.   The earthy genres of roots music come together with a freshness that keeps her music from being traditional.   “Dreams” has all the makings of a classic folk song, but it is laced with the breezy, unpredictability of jazz.   “Home,” with its grounding in blues, also stirs with the transient quality of a meditation, while the gospel showstopper “Trouble,” is tinged with the flavors of country and 1960s R&B. While Julia playfully draws from a wide range of influences, she reveals a very confident and natural relationship between them.   The resulting simplicity, directness and focus are announced lucidly in her title track, “Hush.” Ten of the album's eleven tracks are Julia's compositions.   Her words shed light on the desire to break free even as one longs for the safe haven of home.   Her stories are intimate and deeply personal, but they are not tethered to any particular time or place, making them both enigmatic and universal. Program 01. Dreams     3:07 02. Trouble     4:23 03. Hush     4:36 04. So Much     4:03 05. Home     4:11 06. Sleep     4:30 07. The Sweetest Thing     3:55 08. Sisyphus     3:25 09. Blue     3:42 10. Soldier     4:42 11. The Luckiest Girl     5:01 BePop Records distributed in Australia by Rockian Trading