Julian Bach

Julian Bach was born 5 minutes to midnight, on the 30th October, 1984. He is the first born child to his parents, DeWet and Lorna, and grew up in Somerset West, South Africa.​

Surfing, skateboarding and playing music were his primary interests during his youth. But after listening to early influences like The Beatles, Nirvana, Green Day and Rancid he officially became hooked on making music.

There used to be an old beach café right by the ocean.
Inside, kids of all creeds would gather and enthusiastically appreciate their favourite local noisemakers. It was here that Julian cut his teeth, in the early 2000's, with the first of many bands: Sourdough. A few more bands followed after this period, but the most successful of them was Heldervue, a three piece progressive rock band consisting of Julian Bach on vocals and guitar, Fourie Pretorius on drums and Phil Joubert on bass guitar.

A lot has changed for him since those days in the quaint suburbs, but the core of it remains the same: to make music for the sake of making music. His debut solo album, Man On The Bicycle, was released in 2013 and harks back to the simplicity of youth and is punctuated by moments of nostalgia and wistfulness that only growing up can incite.
From its opening track, Ride — with its rolling choruses and sing-along melodies — to the outlandishly eerie waltz, Ode To No One — right up until the closing track, the honest and anthemic Pirates On A Dead Sea.

His latest album, Heavy Breathing, was released in 2020. This album is the result of a three year home recording adventure and is his most honest and insightful work to date, all while keeping the music creative, powerful and catchy!
In his own words: “My second album is an alternative rock album that ranges from guitar-driven songs to a few ballads, all of which are very personal to me and are mostly about personal relationships, struggles with mental health and love. It took about three years to complete, but this was mainly because I was also travelling and working as a musician at sea and in the Middle East. I only worked on the album when I came home to South Africa. So naturally, every song has a different flavour or theme to it. Lots can happen in a few years, so I took all that and chucked it into my writing process.”
He also speaks about his first two singles off the new record: “The World” and “Element”.

What is “The World” about and what inspired the song?
“During a time when I thought my whole life was crashing down on me, this song was written as a reminder not to be overwhelmed by what the world throws at you. I wrote this song to support my belief that everything will be OK, even if it doesn't feel like it. Sometimes you just have to say these words out loud. We've been worried for no reason at all. It is an anthem for people that feel overwhelmed.”

What is “Element” about and what inspired the song?
“The song Element was written in one sitting. I think it took me about an hour to write and the strangest thing is it turned out to be one of my favourite originals ever. It is about making peace with and accepting our flawed humanity. It is about embracing all aspects of ourselves, the good and the bad, and being rock solid regardless of your emotional state. My element has always been water and I have learned how to be comfortable in it on calm days and during the turbulent storms.”

Julian’s new music captures a quality of songwriting entirely unique to him; his writing is insightful, creative and sometimes a bit strange, but somehow still manages to sound familiar.
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Most recently he has been performing around the world on cruise ships with singer, Elena Forbes. Playing not only original music, but covering all genres such as pop, rock, funk, jazz, r&b, motown and classics.