Honey Made

Honey Made: “Pass Me By”

It’s finally starting to get chilly ’round these parts…at least at night. You know what that means: cuffing season is upon us. So if your slow jams playlist is starting to feel a bit stale, we’ve got great news for you.

Austin soul-funk nine-piece Honey Made just unfurled a sensual five-minute inferno – “Pass Me By”. Is it a departure from their historically uptempo sound? Undeniably. But does it also echo the hot-and-heavy energy of golden age quiet storm, not too far from Between the Sheets-era Isley Brothers? Absolutely.

Even if your evening plans don’t include staying in bed with your boo, you’re in luck too. Honey Made plays a free show 8PM tonight at Drinks Backyard. Either way, for those feeling like their world’s quickly spinning out of control, slow things down a notch or two on your way out of the workweek with this expertly crafted, violin spiced reminder to always love the one you’re with, something that’s sure to wrap you up like a warm, snug blanket throughout the upcoming winter.

Honey Made: “FYC”

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we’re already salivating over all the fixings, dressings, and sauces that await us next week. But if you want something homegrown that’ll slather up your ear drums and keep you full ’til the proverbial turkey gobbles, serve yourself up some Honey Made.

The Austin-based nine-piece started oozing out of the jar at the turn of this past decade, and in 2020 alone put out not just their debut EP Couple Few but also their first full-length Brand New. Now, as with any horn-heavy stage-filling ensemble, Honey Made is best enjoyed in a live setting, so we can’t really blame them for taking their time in terms of subsequent studio releases. That said, this Friday Honey Made unfurls their sophomore EP Charge It To The Band Fund.

On top of an edit of last summer’s “Upstairs”, CITTBF totes six new tunes that attest to Honey Made’s impressive perseverance and undying efforts towards shaking rumps and sating the parched. As someone who used to play in a fifteen-piece, I can tell you that the band fund is all-too-real, and honestly a better bet for pooling towards the next big thing. So chip in as much as you can at the Charge It To The Band Fund EP release show 10PM Saturday night at the Skylark Lounge with openers The Reverent Few at 8PM. And if you want to get some mileage out of your stank face before settling in with your relatives, loved ones, or whomever you share Thanksgiving with, turn the volume all the way up, plow onto your couch, and get kickin’ with “FYC”. Whether or not you take your shoes off is up to you…

Honey Made: “Upstairs”

Having played trumpet in a band whose membership ranged from around fifteen to twenty, “the more the merrier” approach didn’t really translate to exceptional songwriting. Thankfully that’s not the case for Austin nine-piece Honey Made. The first leg of Honey Made’s career was spent in the “party band” realm, wowing crowds more with enduring arrangements and a rapid-fire series of high-energy solos. But since they’ve internalized some of the lessons imparted on them by producer Steve Berlin (who helped shape Honey Made’s 2020 debut full-length Brand New), Honey Made’s managed to unstick themselves from the “jam band” mindset and embrace a previously-untapped but intrinsic excellence. Now Honey Made strives to refine their funk and soul so much that it’s sweetness gets stuck in your ears for years, instead of just oozing offstage the minute the gig’s over. Honey Made played last Friday at Radio Coffee & Beer and just today released a stinger of a funk-soul single. Between Honey Made’s signature horn stabs, cool choral harmonies, and vocals that give the late Charles Bradley a run for his money, “Upstairs” proves just how little musical real estate Honey Made needs to create a playful, catchy retro-modern masterpiece.