Jolly

JOLLY is a progressive-alternative rock band from New York City, influenced by bands including Tears For Fears, Radiohead, Faith No More, and Pink Floyd. After recording some demos and putting them up on Myspace, they caught the attention of Galileo Records, through which they released their first full-length album, Forty-Six Minutes, Twelve Seconds of Music (2009). To support the album release, JOLLY made their first trip to Europe to tour with Riverside and Pure Reason Revolution. The album, along with JOLLY’s live performances, were received positively by music journalists and fans, and JOLLY’s presence in the progressive rock world was established.

JOLLY signed with InsideOut Music to release their ambitious two-part album, The Audio Guide To Happiness (Part 1) in 2011, and The Audio Guide to Happiness (Part 2) in 2013. During this time, Hurricane Sandy destroyed drummer Louis Abramson’s home, which functioned as the band’s practice and recording studio. Much of JOLLY’s equipment needed to be replaced as they were preparing for a tour. JOLLY launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise funds to recover from the damage of the storm, and their fans responded with an outpour of financial and emotional support, enabling them to continue on at full force. JOLLY played numerous tours to support the albums, including a headlining European tour, US and European support tours with Riverside, a US support tour with Scale the Summit, and a European support tour with Bigelf. Mike Portnoy expressed that he was a fan of JOLLY’s music, and invited them to play numerous support shows with his bands, including The Flying Colors, The Winery Dogs, and Progressive Nation at Sea. JOLLY also played festivals such as Rosfest, Cruise to the Edge, and ProgPower Europe, where in 2014 they did a full performance of both parts of The Audio Guide to Happiness.

In November 2015, JOLLY announced that they were going to begin releasing music independently, and launched a Patreon campaign. Their dedicated fan base eagerly supported the band’s new platform, and JOLLY found themselves with the means to work directly for their fans. The band revealed its fourth album would be entitled Family, signifying the relationship they had with their fanbase, and that they would be releasing the songs individually before making the full album available.

Shortly after releasing the first three songs from Family on Patreon, JOLLY began to have families of their own. Content output slowed down significantly as the realities of life settled it. The band members took time to make adjustments to their personal and professional lives while always maintaining a commitment to finishing the album and continuing on as a band. After a few years of sporadic releases, JOLLY picked up the pace in 2018, and are excited to finally be releasing Family and Family (Deluxe) in June 2019. To support the album release, JOLLY will perform a series of European tour dates, including the Midsummer Prog Festival in The Netherlands.

Family is proof that JOLLY has to keep making music, no matter the obstacles. Through the successes and challenges, JOLLY remains committed to creating music thanks to their incredible fans. The future holds exciting possibilities for JOLLY.