Honeybone: Soul on Fire
Soul on Fire is Dunedin band Honeybone’s debut E.P. As a first release, it definitely sounds as though this band rushed into recording. The E.P. comes through the speakers well thanks to the wise choice of having it mastered by Dale Cotton. This said, it falls down due to the key elements of Honeybone’s musical style and unfortunately their musicality.
This E.P. shows Honeybone are still struggling to distil their influences. There are many occasions when one is listening to a song from Soul on Fire and has a sense of déjà vu as if you’ve heard this before. Time and time again the influence of the Datsuns and the White Stripes can be heard. In fact, it sounds like the members of those bands procreated to result in the song “Vagabond.”
Honeybone were let down musically on two levels. Firstly and most disappointingly, there are blatantly out of tune vocals evident on the recording. This is inexcusable as when recording you get 1001 takes if you need them to get the music right. Listeners will be horrified when hearing the chorus of “Happy” as the two vocalists clash repeatedly. To make matters worse the same mistakes are evident every time the chorus comes back suggesting some copy and pasting went on during production.
Soul on Fire also lacked creativity in the organisation of their songs. The song structures are predictable. Riff, Verse, Chorus, Riff, Verse, Chorus, Solo, etc. Some of their riffs had potential to grow into good songs but they were often only constructed on one musical idea. “Free Your Soul” is an example of a song where a riff was dragged out to the extreme. This song is three minutes too long and only based on the main chords of the key (I, IV and V). It leaves musicians begging for more complexity and the everyday listener begging for the end.
Honeybone are a young band and play their instruments well. Although Soul on Fire is not a release of the year, there is a possibility that future endeavours could be worth a listen if they find something to differentiate themselves from the “generic” label.
Ben Madden.
2.5/5
