Holy Moly & The Crackers - Solid Gold (2023) [Hi-Res]

For a band that have from the outset been pegged as 'folk-rock', Newcastle's Holy Moly & The Crackers sure have come a long way in their sound and their approach over the past decade. The result of this process is 'Solid Gold', an album that digs deep into the Americana that's played an ever-greater part in their sound, and is full of the 'big skies and long roads' (partly as a result of a trip to Austin Texas in the Spring of 2022).

Leaning into their Bob Dylan and Carole King influences, as well as the sleek beats and production of Danger Mouse, and the pounding riff-o-rama of Jack White at his most crazed, 'Solid Gold' could only be made in 2022 but feels like it could have been exhumed any time from 1970. The end result is a rich but streamlined sound, with voices and rhythms to the fore, energetic and punchy (a storming mix from multiple-Grammy winner Vance Powell plays a big part in that). The group's more intimate, folky sound on songs such as 'Come On Down' provides a great contrast to the huge riffs (as on the pounding, almost Weezer-y 'Angeline'). The band see the album as the clearest expression yet of where they are as a band and as people.

Solid Gold is an album that's going to delight old fans and win over new ones. But more importantly it's an album that lays bare a band at the peak of their powers, absolutely expressing their best and most honest selves.