It started out as live tribute last November. Lenny Kaye, Arto Lindsay, Voidoids’ Ivan Julian and others convened at NYC’s Bowery Electric to pay homage to the late, great Lou Reed. The Queens-based roots-rock band Hollis Brown were also invited to perform the Velvet Underground’s 1970 album What began as live memorial to a fallen legend has now been preserved on wax for the ages. !Hollis Brown Gets Loaded finds the foursome turning in earthy studio takes on all 10 of perhaps the VU’s most accessible tracks. From the cocky strut of classics such as “Sweet Jane” and “Rock & Roll” to the lovely balladry of “New Age,” “I Found A Reason” and the pile-driving rock of “Head Held High”, Hollis Brown pays homage to this time-honored album with takes that don’t stray too far from the originals, yet still unfold as beautiful new songs with their own unmistakable rootsy approach. And not unlike the running order of the tracks – which goes from last to first, opening with “Oh! Sweet Nuthin’” and closing with “Who Loves The Sun” – this is one great young NYC rock band putting a refreshing new spin on, arguably, the greatest of NYC rock bands.
