HOLY HOLY have just dropped their anticipated second LP, Paint, and its hazy alt-psych is a gorgeously textured development of their previous work – but don’t take our word for it.

In the spirit of collaboration, another of our favourite new Aussie artists Bec Sandridge has given us a review of the record, by way of recounting her first experience with Paint. As it happens, it was a darky and stormy night…

Bec Sandridge reviews Holy Holy’s Paint

My band and I were driving back from Secret Garden festival at 1am listening to Paint.

It was the perfect soundtrack for a stormy night, crammed in an eight-seater van with all of our gear. We were homeward bound (to my parents’ house on the South Coast), the glass was slowly fogging up and we had just played (potentially) our sweatiest show to date.

Pronged behind the wheel, slowly suffocating in the air conditioning, I considered the fact that my favourite part of this PAINT record is that I could actively guitar tone nerd out for a solid 43 minutes.

There’s something quite sinister or intense about HOLY HOLY. I’m not sure if it’s the beds of percussion or walls of guitars which throw you into an almost hypnotic state. Whirring guitars duel at the commencement of almost all the songs, harmonising in wacky distortions and fuzz, and join up as the same team for each powerful chorus as Tim’s vocal kind of floats effortlessly over the top.

When track seven ‘True Lovers’ played, I almost jumped out of my driving seat. Being an eighties synth enthusiast and all-round sad boogie enthusiast, this was definitely my favourite track. My band and I nodded along, and agreed that you can almost guarantee HOLY HOLY to be a phenomenal live band.

HOLY HOLY’s new album Paint is available now, while Bec Sandridge continues her ‘In The Fog’ tour across the country throughout March and April.

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine