HELLO MY BEAUTIFUL WORLD, THE NEW ALBUM FROM HOLY HOLY LANDS FRIDAY 20 AUGUST + TRACK ‘BELIEVE ANYTHING’ OUT NOW
Photo credit: Simon Eeles
“The high-energy cut oscillates between woozy, smouldering verses and big anthemic refrains.”
- NME
"... an immersive, surging cut unlike anything else in the Holy Holy back catalogue."
- MIXDOWN
Today, Holy Holy announces Hello My Beautiful World. The fourth studio album from Tim Carroll and Oscar Dawson will land on Friday 20 August via Wonderlick Recording Company. To mark the release, the sonic masterminds have unveiled the arresting new album track, Believe Anything.
Believe Anything examines what it is to believe something and the changing nature of truth. “Believe Anything was one of the first songs we wrote for the record, and from the beginning, it always felt right. We got the main character of it all out in one quick session, and then over the months, we refined it. We added beautiful string arrangements, and some mean dark synths in the back half. Japanese Wallpaper spent some time with the session and added some novel sounds and textures to the arrangement. We layered the vocals and worked on balancing the various melodies, but this song, unlike others, came together easily,” says frontman Carroll of the track.
Recorded in a series of modest studios and spare rooms in Tasmania and Victoria, Holy Holy’s fourth album, Hello My Beautiful World is perhaps their most fully realised. Built upon a foundation of electronic beats and rolling synths, the record combines lush string arrangements, May-esque guitar riffs and chanted vocals to produce a heady and persuasive mix. The record moves fluidly through a collection of feverish moods and atmospheres, unfolding unpredictably and building to a series of fierce and manic highs. It’s a dense and ambitious record suited to close and repeated listening.
“We were given all the freedom in the world to do whatever we wanted, and this is what we did,” adds Carroll of the record. “The songs dwell in the details of living. Dreams are a theme. Dreams you have when you're sleeping. Not the dreams you come up with when you're awake. Not a series of desires. Dreams where you have no control, and you scare yourself,” says Carroll of the LP.
Like many records you will hear throughout 2021, Hello My Beautiful World was largely forged in the midst of Australia's lockdown period. The pair didn't tackle the album entirely on their own - Japanese Wallpaper added distinctive texture and flair across the album, CLEWS, meanwhile, have their voices featured on the incessant, electric cut The Aftergone, and of course there is the hyperactive, fiery guest verses of Melbourne rapper Queen P on Port Rd. Throw in the flourishes of composer Toby Alexander's string arrangements, plus collaborations with The Presets Kim Moyes, and you're looking at a record that sees the band redefining itself as a powerful force in the Australian songwriting landscape.
“When we work with people from different genres, it’s not that we’re totally different from them. There are heaps of similarities too. Music genres aren’t black-and-white, there isn’t some sort of binary,” Dawson adds. “It's all about the grey zone where the two of you meet in the middle – you realise that you connect on a certain level, but you also have access to a different perspective. You’re similar enough to be together in the first place; but where you differ is where the light can come through.”
Featuring lead single Port Rd. feat. Queen P and current single How You Been, Hello My Beautiful World is an accomplished release from a band that is certainly not short on accomplishments. With their three full-length albums to date, the duo have built a loyal and dedicated fanbase with over 100 million streams across their body of work and multiple gold and platinum singles hanging on their walls. If that wasn't enough, there are nominations for ARIA Awards, J Awards and National Live Music Awards to take note of, all maintained through their fanatically attended live shows and unique songwriting.
Hello My Beautiful World will be released through Wonderlick Recording Company on Friday 20 August and is available to pre order now. The album is available in all formats including a limited edition clear vinyl, with a 24-page booklet including the 11 original song artworks.