If Dick Clark were still alive and hosting American Bandstand (I know we’re 30 years too late), these guys would be booked and have its audience hooked! Holly brings us a soulful, timeless and touching rock n’ roll slow jam on their latest release ‘Don’t You Break My Heart.’ The brass horns sound like an opening of a traditional swing song, the lead singer swoons with his soulful and attractive voice, the rhythmic riff-based guitars come in and out at just the right time and the percussion drive a steady back beat to round out this track. ‘Don’t You Break My Heart’ was made for slow dancing; the American Bandstand style (hands on hips, hands on shoulders) so you and your love can look deeply into one another’s eyes feel the lyrics and the moment.
Holly brings us music that is reminiscent of years of the past where the northern soul saw Motown rule over Chicago to Detroit through the 50s and 60s. What differentiates Holly from a blast from the past style band is there modern take on the music they create. By adding a sweet, beach & soul vibe to their rock and roll background. Leon Bridges, Whitney, Wilco, Tame Impala and Sam Cooke lend inspiration to a group that originally picked up their instruments to the tune of alternative garage bands. Their distinctive sound crosses genre barriers and introduces one of the most inspiring and premier acts coming out of Chicago today. Experience Holly’s soul today and check out the link to release ‘Don’t You Break My Heart’ today.
Greetings, and thank you for taking the time to speak with us a BuzzMusic. Can you start by telling our readers a bit about yourselves?
We're a 5-piece alternative set from Chicago. We draw a lot of our influence from old school school soul music but we also draw on a wide array of modern artists and influence to incorporate in our music. We'd also like to add that we're weirdos who tend to be more active and tour more in the winter months of Chicago and then hibernate and stay in our basement studio in the summer.
We loved your latest release ‘Don’t You Break My Heart.’ Can you tell us the meaning behind the song?
Thanks! We like that one too. That song is our opening track off of our record "Letters from Lawndale" which we put out last summer. Classic heartbreak song to be honest, but we purposefully wrote it with some dynamic changes throughout and layered instrumentation to add extra depths so that it's not just lyrics to make you feel something.
You mentioned you are largely inspired by the soulful, rhythm and blues music of the 50s,60s- how do you blend that style with a more modern sound?
We certainly draw the most influence from old school soul artists and groups. People like Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Sam Cooke, Lee Fields, Aretha Franklin. The musicians backing up these artists and playing in these bands are unparalleled in the music world. We also take so much from artists we know and love today though. We're always attending punk, alternative, hip hop, pop and cumbia concerts just to name a few so we draw inspiration from it all and do our best to tie other fresh elements in within a cohesive manner where we can. I think our new projects will continue to reflect that.
What does the creative process look like for you guys?
Everyone is always writing in this group. And everyone plays multiple instruments so it's not always just classic guitar riff with a foundation of lyrics being introduced as our standard process of writing music. Usually there are multiple well-thought out ideas and instruments in the mix already and then we start workshopping and demoing ideas to marinate. it has been one of the most fun parts lately as we focus more and more on our writing.
What’s next for you guys?
We have some fun hometown shows coming up. We have a cool East Coast tour in July. Most importantly we have a record to finish up writing and then working out our releases! We're havin' fun!
Stay connected with Holly through their socials!
Instagram: www.instagram.com/holly.band
Facebook: www.facebook.com/holly.band