Lily

Country of origin:

U.S

Type of music generally:

Ethereal pop

Status:

Most recent release, Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt, 2005

See also:

Lily's site

Comparisons:

I have discerned varying kinds of overlap with Aimee Mann, Milla, Kate Bush and Happy Rhodes. (mapravat@prairienet.org)

Covers/own material:

Own and co-written

General comments:

If you are looking for something to tide you over until the next Susan Court album, try Lily's running from the sky.... (gordoja@optonline.net)

See album comments below, Running From The Sky being her only album to date. (mapravat@prairienet.org)

Recommended first album:

Running From The Sky is the only one we've heard

Recordings:

• Running From The Sky
• Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt

Running From The Sky

Release info:

2000--self-released

Availability:

CD Baby or check website for availability

Ecto priority:

Highly recommended

Group members:

Lily Holbrook--vocals, guitar

Guest artists:

Bill Roberts--guitar, keyboards
David Santucci--violins
Melanie Dyball--cellos
"Psychologist" Gertrude--wolf howl
Jay Gullinello--trumpets
Bridget Mullen--miscellaneous sound effects
Scott Keneally-djembe, didjeridu
"Psychic" Wilma--dulcimer

Produced by:

Lily and Bill

Comments:

The superficial appearance of this album's packaging has the unfortunate side effect of making Holbrook appear less serious than she is. The back cover has a photo of the artist (who somewhat resembles Drew Barrymore) in a midriff-baring top--though the recent reinventions of Liz Phair and Jewel, coming on the heels of the initial invention of the likes of Britney Spears, may have oversensitized me to such things. And the booklet prominently displays cartoon drawings of her as a mermaid and as an astronaut, no doubt inspired by tracks titled "Mermaids" and "Spaceship." But once you get beyond these visual red herrings, you'll be pleased to find a lot of substance and originality on the disc.
     The songs generally come across to me as dealing with problems in general and relationship problems in particular; the tension between fantasy and reality seems a recurrent theme. Both the music and lyrics are very well done. In addition to guitar and piano, the instrumentation includes such diverse instruments as string quartets and digeridu. Holbrook's voice may be a bit on the girlish side, but it holds its own with those of artists like Kate Bush, Happy Rhodes in her higher registers, Jane Siberry and Jane Wiedlin. I also detect shared qualities with the voices of Aimee Mann and Milla. The lyrics to a couple of songs include references to people's "veins," which has aroused my curiosity as to whether drug problems on the part of people in her life have been among the inspirations for her material.
     In a way, I almost hope that Holbrook remains a niche artist in the long run. It would be a shame to have the forces of commercialism tamper with her artistic vision. (mapravat@prairienet.org)

Further info:

Email lilyholbrook@hotmail.com

Thanks to Mitch Pravatiner for his work on this entry