Hollis Brown at the Drom

College friends Mike Montali  and Jon Bonilla wrote over 50 songs together before starting the band Hollis Brown in 2009 in Queens, New York. The band released a debut EP in 2012, and a debut album, Ride on the Train in 2013. For Record Store Day 2014, the band released the limited edition vinyl-only Gets Loaded, a track-for-track re-imagining of the Velvet Underground's 1970 album Loaded. After a few personnel changes, the band is currently comprised of Montali on vocals, Bonilla on guitar, Adam Bock on keyboards, Dillon Devito on bass and Andrew Zehnal on drums.

At the Drom tonight, Hollis Brown performed original songs as well as the Velvet Underground tracks. The original songs were built around heartfelt lyrics, sweet melodies  and country-styled harmonies to create a rustic and soulful rock sound. The musicians mixed a foundation of classic blues-based rock with southern rock guitar, honky tonk piano and a garage band rhythm section for a sound that felt familiar yet different. The Velvet Underground covers leaned more towards raw garage rock. Halfway through the performance, fellow local rocker Jesse Malin joined Hollis Brown on stage to sing the Velvet Underground's "Sweet Jane." Throughout the set, however, Hollis Brown showed that mainstream rock is alive and well.

Visit Hollis Brown at www.holiisbrown.com.