the southern rock of Bad Mistakes, these are songs
in the classic tradition, retooled for modern times.
“The bands we admire most are the Allmans,
Led Zeppelin, Beatles, Stones,” Montali explains.
“But our goal on this record was to be the best
fucking rock’n’roll band and carry the torch into
2019, instead of just making a record that sounds
like 1976.”
They enjoy a double entendre.
Ozone Park’s lyric sheet explores every kind of
relationship, from the oat-sowing womaniser of
Stubborn Man to the divorcees of Blood From A Stone.
But you’ve got to read between the lines, Montali
reminds us. “Do Me Right is about my wife and how
she’s always had my back, even when I’m a dick.
But there’s also that innuendo that I love in songs.
Like ‘You always do me right’, in a sexual way.”They’ve suffered for their art.
There have been great days in Hollis Brown,
Montali reflects. Like the time they scored a record
deal after performing the Velvet Underground’s
Loaded album in full, or covered Walk This Way with
Run-DMC. But the real measure of this line-up is
their endurance for the bad things.
“Being in a band is yin and yang,” he offers. “We
were headed to New Orleans and our tyre blew
out. We were lucky we didn’t flip the van. We made
the gig, but afterwards someone’s dog peed onour tour manager, and another guy sliced his hand
completely open at two a.m. That was twenty-four
hours of fucking hell!”They have a higher calling.
Like all the best bands, Hollis Brown fight like cats
in a bag. But that doesn’t distract them from their
higher purpose, says Montali.
“We’ve been through the fire. There’s been
fights, alcohol abuse. That’s the nature of the beast.
But we all realise that what we’re doing is as good
or better than any fucking rock show you’re gonna
see. So we keep coming back.”Ozone Park is out on June 7 via Mascot Label Group.CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM 25