@Julie Christensen’s band @Stone Cupid is a kindred spirit to her post-punk powerhouse @Divine Horsemen. “That first lineup fell together almost fatefully, and the songs seemed to play themselves,” says Christensen. “It was so natural, so simpatico, like some concurrent extra-spiritual thing.” Stone Cupid headed to the studio with producer Jeff Turmes in 2015 to capture that vibe on @The Cardinal, released in early 2016. Since then, the complete band, and various combinations of those players have toured with Julie, and the original outfit got together again in December of 2017, this time with Turmes on bass, to record @A Sad Clown, released soon after in early 2018. Christensen, who’s authored 7 independent albums and sung with everyone from Leonard Cohen to Lou Reed, has surrounded herself with a team of team players. In guitarists Sergio Webb and Chris Tench, the absence of ego is on full display. As Tench creates an ideal sonic landscape, Webb populates it with one stunning surprise after another. Propelling the band are drummer Steve Latanation and bassists Bones Hillman, Jeff Turmes, Dylan Rowe, or Parker Hawkins, who combine taste and telepathy into something so unified they seem a single entity. Producer Turmes, who’s played with such luminaries as Mavis Staples, Tom Waits and Richard Thompson, helmed two records for Julie, (2012’s @Weeds Like Us, a project that garnered some end-of-year honors, and @The Cardinal) and played bass and banjo on a third, @A Sad Clown.