Holly Golightly and Lawyer Dave; Photo courtesy of Holly Golightly
Renowned genre-blending artist Holly Golightly returns from a hiatus with the Brokeoffs and an equine-themed album titled Clippety Clop, due out May 4th. Working once again with life and music partner Lawyer Dave, Golightly crafts a set of twelve songs that combine the spirit of punk with the authenticity of rural Americana.
A quick look at the song titles on Holly Golightly & the Brokeoffs’ Clippety Clop reveals a clear, unifying theme: “I Ride an Old Paint,” “Mule Skinner,” “Pinto Pony.” But at its core, Golightly says that Clippety Clop is simply “what came out best from a batch of songs we wanted to do.”
London-born Golightly got her professional start as a member of Kent, England’s Thee Headcoatees, a garage rock combo formed as an opening act for Billy Childish and his band, Thee Headcoats. After the group’s run of albums and singles ended, Golightly continued a solo career that had already kicked off with her 1995 debut album The Good Things. She has also lent her talents to others’ work, including vocals on the White Stripes track “It’s True That We Love One Another.” As a solo artist, Golightly has released nearly a dozen albums; Clippety Clop is the tenth long-player credited to Holly Golightly & the Brokeoffs (“& the Brokeoffs” is really just Holly’s longtime partner Lawyer Dave) It will hit the streets May 4, 2018 on Transdreamer Records via The Orchard / Sony.
Clippety Clop opens with “Mule Skinner,” an irreverent and plucky country blues that effectively sets the album’s mood. Holly and Dave often sound like a bigger band, extracting the most mileage out of the least number of instruments. Dave’s lean, distorted guitar lines juxtapose wonderfully with the down-home vibe. The duo’s ragged-but-right harmony (and/or unison) vocals convey the album’s spirit: equal parts punk-era England and timeless classic American country.
Golightly explains, “We tend to work a lot, so it made sense to us. It’s also a favorite of mine on the album, and that’s why it’s the first track. It’s a classic song that lots of people have done versions of, so we thought we should too.”
