The headline is misleading, If you go see Julia McDougall, beloved transplant to the Regina music scene, she’ll still be doing playing from behind a piano. What has changed, though, is her performing name. No more will her act be known as Julia and Her Piano. Instead, she’s going simply as Julia McDougall these days.
She’s been performing as Julia and Her Piano for a while now, even before the release of her 2009 full-length Who Is This. But her new EP, I Don’t Really Care, marks her transition into a new part of her musical career. With a full-length on the way and a recently-recorded Daytrotter session behind her, dropping the goofy if charming name made sense.
“It’s something from when I was so young but I never switched it because that’s how people had gotten to know me and it’s hard to switch over,” says McDougall. “But I had to make the transition, because I actually had someone come tell me this summer when I played at the Gateway Festival in Bengough.
“‘We weren’t sure if we should come see you. We imagined Julia and her Piano being a grandma.’
“That’s the last straw. That’s a sign I need to change the name.”
So keep it in mind: from now on, it’s Julia McDougall, not Julia and Her Piano.
Julia will be playing tonight, November 11 at the Artful Dodger, along with Evening Hymns and Andy Shauf, who’s headlining in support of his new album, The Bearer of Bad News.
