Holly Golightly
Slowtown Now
(Damaged Goods)

You may know Holly Golightly from Thee Headcoatees. You may also know her from her guest spot on The White Stripes’ Elephant. Then again, you may not know her at all. Though she’s been recording for over 20 years and has a pile of records to her name, Holly Golightly remains a cult fave in the already cult-like world of garage rock. Since 2007 she’s been playing with her duo, Holly Golightly & The Brokeoffs. Slowtown Now is her first solo album of original material in 10 years.

The music here is all pleasant enough, with plenty of blues and early rock and roll flavor. Yet I can’t help but wish it was a little looser. The vibe is decidedly “coffee shop.” I’m sure many will appreciate the restraint and tightness of the playing, I just tend to like my garage rock to be a little more ramshackle. Highlights include the girl-groupish “Fool Fool Fool (Look in the Mirror), the reverbed-out cowboy ballad “Slowtown,” and “Forevermore,” which makes great use of the melody from “Apache.” The other highlight is Holly’s voice which handles any genre she chooses to attempt equally well. Slowtown Now is not as fun as Thee Headcoatees, but it’s a good grown-up rock record. If it’s not quite your thing, you could check out her new album with The Brokeoffs, which also just came out.