Welsh trio Honeytalks have recently burst onto the scene, having dropped three singles in quick succession. With their stock on the rise, TGEFM got in touch for a round of Roll of the Dice. We rolled a SIX.
1) Honeytalks has recently launched onto the scene in a big way. I really like the music you’ve shared so far so… kudos! Before we dive into the band, what previous acts might our readers recognize you all from, and how did Honeytalks come together?
Thanks Jeff! So we have all been involved with music since we were young. We’ve been part of various bands of different genres ranging from hardcore to acoustic. My last band before Honeytalks was called The Reminisce, which Dave was also a part of. It was based on acoustic rock with some emo elements thrown in for good mix. Before that, I was in a hardcore band called Wolves which I did vocals for. Dave has also been involved in the hardcore scene too playing bass in a band called Mental Block. He’s also big into his jazz! And finally, you may recognise Lauren from various punk bands, jazz band, orchestras, and military corps of drums.
Honeytalks came together through the isolating and numbing period of Lockdown. Basically, whilst in lockdown I suffered badly with my mental health. I hadn’t done anything musically for a few years and decided to pick up my guitar and write about how I was feeling. Not being able to play or go to live shows really brought back how much I loved music and that I still wanted to be involved in the scene. Music has always been a huge part of my life, and so I decided to commit fully to the cause. I basically wrote an album’s worth of music then started looking around for others who may want to join in. That’s when I messaged Dave, who was up for it. And Lauren who hadn’t played for 4 years but was in a similar situation to me, so she got on board too!
2) You’re one of those bands that seamlessly blends the more anthemic pop-punk style with melodic punk successfully. What are some of the biggest influences on your sounds and style?
Well for me, I grew up listening to lots of pop music which my mum and dad would put on MTV when I was younger, hence the anthemic choruses and pop structures. But from school I’ve always been into the early 2000’s pop punk/punk rock stuff like Blink 182, Alkaline Trio, MxPx, Sum 41, etc. Lauren and Dave also enjoy the early 2000’s pop punk bands which I think resonates in our sound too. Alongside this, Lauren has experience in marching bands and jazz which she implements into our songs.
3) Given, you only have three officially-released songs, but I know you’ve got more in the wings. How collaborative is the lyric and song-writing process within the band?
The typical way we usually do things, is I will come up with maybe half a song or a full song on guitar with lyrics and bring that into practice. We then break it down as a band and rebuild it. Although we do occasionally jam in practice from complete scratch and see what comes of it. Which is exactly how “Radio” was written. Lyrically, I write all the vocals but I’m always open to ideas from the guys.
4) Speaking of more in the wings, you’ve got your debut EP out soon. Can you share more information on that release?
Sure! We’re basically releasing a few singles over the next couple of months, then hopefully releasing the full EP just after. Although we do have more recordings in the pipeline too!
5) Give me some bands that TGEFM’s readers probably don’t know of, but really should start paying attention to.
We’ve had the opportunity to play with some awesome bands since we started in July 2021. But to name a few, our mates in Fly-52 are putting out some good stuff. Good Hustles from Nottingham. Slackrr from Southampton and if you’re into a bit of post-punk, our mates Brutes from North Wales.
6) Aside from the upcoming EP, what’s next for Honeytalks?
Ahh man, we’ve got so much going on and it’s all happening at once! We’ve been shortlisted for a Kerrang competition which we’re waiting on results for. We’ve got new music coming out soon. We’ve got lots of gigs coming up and we’re hoping to get out on the road as much as possible over the next year. Our aim is to get over to America at some point too.
Check out Honeytalks’ music at their YouTube or Spotify pages. You can also support the band via their Facebook or Instagram pages.
Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A Pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed.
the white drew carey (aka – Jeff Sorley) is the founder and head editor of TGEFM. He’s lived (outside of) Chicago, Madison WI, (ugh) Penn State, Lyon FR, Oxford UK, central New Jersey, and now within earshot of SFO in the Bay Area. When not scouring the web for more great bands and labels to post about, he also spends time drawing (mostly) silly sci-fi and anime stuff under the name Asplenia Studios.
