If the introspective loneliness permeating their 2022 self-titled debut was indicative of its pandemic-era writing process, the confusion heard within Honeyglaze’s new sophomore record can likely be chalked up to the recent period of struggling to kick-start our lives again following a very disorienting couple of years. After touring as support for acts like Interpol and Wet Leg upon the release of Honeyglaze, the forthcoming Real Deal ironically sounds more confident instrumentally, with the controlled chaos that defines their new lyrical material feeling like a natural expression of contemporary angst as the band masters the art of genre-blending, hairpin turns, and other nuances that evidently could’ve been improved upon the first time around. “It was quite reactionary,” vocalist/guitarist Anouska Sokolow shared leading up to the record’s release. “Musically, we were reacting to the first album thinking, ‘How can we do better?’”
Compared to Honeyglaze, Real Deal is considerably harder to define, with shades of math rock and Midwest emo heard in the bass and percussion parts as early as the album’s second track, “Cold Caller.” Perhaps the softer “TMJ” better exemplifies these influences, with drummer Yuri Shibuichi noting that Pinback and American Football were “an ongoing mood” during the recording process. I suppose it’s also important to keep in mind that the trio hails from London, with bands like Black Midi and Squid recently demonstrating what’s currently in the water in that city that’s been turning even the most unassuming musicians into torchbearers of avant-garde art-punk and brutal-prog.
With Real Deal landing this Friday via Fat Possum, Sokolow, Shibuichi, and bassist Tim Curtis walk us through their palette of influences on the project—which range from the rhythmic interplay of Warpaint to the ominous droning of Scott Walker to the understated riffs of Destiny’s Child. Check out the full playlist below, and pre-order Real Deal here.
ANOUSKA SOKOLOW
The Zombies, “Tell Her No”
I was so obsessed with the rhythm in the intro and chorus in this song for ages. We love to play with creating subtle and unexpected rhythms, time signatures, and arrangements.
Destiny’s Child, “Bills, Bills, Bills”
I pulled a bit of the riff from this to write “Don’t.” It’s so simple and I love when riffs are strong enough to run through the whole song, to not get boring and everything else builds around it. I love the lyrics, as well—they’re completely unapologetic and surprisingly funny.
Scott Walker, “It’s Raining Today”
I love Scott Walker’s songwriting so much, and the instrumentation on this song is so beautiful. There’s this really beautiful but ominous drone note over the whole song that adds this looming feeling. I’m super inspired by songs that feel cinematic and have natural pauses and sections that are so different, but feel effortless
TIM CURTIS
Ought, “Beautiful Blue Sky”
One of the songs on our record is now under five minutes, but it was eight minutes long when we recorded it. At least an extra minute of the cut material was just a slow, repeating drum outro, with a whisper of the other instruments receding into the background. I like the idea of ending a song but then letting it run out of steam by itself, like getting out of a car while it's still slowing down. Though I suppose it does make parking a bit harder.
Radiohead, “Lucky”
Bits of this, “Subterranean [Homesick Alien]” delays, and a spare coin from “House of Cards” are scattered across my extra guitar parts on our tracks—especially “Ghost.” I love the unapologetic devotion to being melodramatic, epic, and also sad.
Warpaint, “Teese”
The rhythmic interplay of the bass and drums all across this album is a whole different thing. It's the kind of thing that's different from stuff. Not that “stuff” is bad, but it’s not this. Jenny Lee, if you’re still within reach of satellites, I hope you find the money they left up there.
YURI SHIBUICHI
Tony Allen, “Ikeja Roads”
Around the time we were writing, I was in a big Tony Allen phase. I’d discovered Afrobeat properly for the first time. I selected this song because it was one I learned first from his repertoire, which had a spiral effect of new rhythmic ideas to me and introduced new philosophies toward arranging drum parts. Songs like “Movies” and “Cold Caller” have definitely been influenced by it, one way or another.
Big Thief, “Blurred View”
I think a lot of Big Thief had impacted our way of “feeling” when we played together—we were all quite captivated by them around the time of writing. I could pick so many of their songs for this, but I’ve chosen “Blurred View” because of the potency of mood I feel every time I listen to it, and producer Shawn Everett’s awesome approach to it with only using contact mics.
Pinback, “Hurley”
This self-titled album was on repeat during the writing phase, and the writing phase was like two years—so a lot of repeat listens. Along with artists like American Football, this vibe was certainly an ongoing mood when we were writing songs like “TMJ.”
