Julia Jacklin

Julia Jacklin with Jordan Patterson — Event Description

Julia Jacklin brings her introspective, emotionally candid songwriting to San Francisco’s Castro Theatre on Saturday, October 24, 2026, with Jordan Patterson joining the lineup. Doors open at 7:00 pm and the show begins at 8:00 pm, offering audiences a Saturday-night concert centered on Jacklin’s latest creative chapter and the deeply personal ideas behind her fourth album, The Gem.

At the heart of The Gem is a tension Jacklin describes as one of the central questions of her life: wanting to love and be loved while also wanting to feel free. That conflict gives the album an emotional foundation, but the record reaches further into themes of reinvention, relationships, identity, uncertainty, growing older, and learning to trust your own instincts.

The album’s story begins with a place that became meaningful to Jacklin after she moved from Sydney to Melbourne in 2017. In a small Collingwood bar, bands would push dining tables aside and perform from a corner on the floor. Jacklin began spending time there while finding her footing in a new city. The pub, appropriately, was called The Gem.

Eight years later, after releasing Don’t Let the Kids Win (2016), Crushing (2019), and PRE PLEASURE (2022), Jacklin returned to that environment while preparing her fourth record. She wanted to make the album at home in Melbourne and work without the industry expectations that had accompanied much of her career. She enlisted producer Robert Muinos, whose Rat Shack studio was located above her favorite old pub, and recorded with longtime friends Jacob Diamond on guitar, Mimi Gilbert on bass, and Jess Elwood on drums.

What followed was a longer and more searching process than Jacklin anticipated. She initially believed the album was complete, but realized she had not yet fully worked through the experiences behind some of the songs. She and Muinos spent another eleven months revisiting and reshaping the material. Tracks such as “Real Life” and “Brand New” were substantially reimagined, helping the album become something Jacklin could genuinely stand behind.

The resulting music moves between energetic, tactile passages and more vulnerable moments. “Brand New” explores the desire to leave an old version of yourself behind, while “God Sometimes” considers taking control of your own life. “If I Had the Hand of God” asks difficult questions about touring and personal responsibility, while “The Hardest Thing” approaches the end of a relationship with emotional force. “Get Away from Me (I Think I’ll Love You Soon)” brings a brighter, bigger energy influenced by eighties jangle rock and the Melbourne scene that Jacklin came to love.

The album closes with “I Wish,” a tender song written for Jacklin’s younger self and featuring harmonies from Elsie and Maggie Rigby of The Maes. The track continues a tradition Jacklin has developed across her albums: using music to reflect on earlier versions of herself with compassion.

For local audiences, the October 24 performance offers an opportunity to hear this evolving body of work in a live setting, with Jordan Patterson also appearing on the bill. The Castro Theatre provides a distinctive San Francisco backdrop for an evening built around songwriting that is both personal and searching.

With doors at 7:00 pm and the show at 8:00 pm, Saturday night offers a chance to experience Jacklin’s music as she explores what it means to change, begin again, and ultimately become more comfortable with who you are.