It’s hard to listen to London-based soul-pop duo Bad Honey and not feel uplifted. College buds Lydia Clowes (vocals) and Teresa Origone (keyboard, synth) produce laid back, dreamy music that sounds like the soundtrack to a night in with your best friend. Their latest EP, Awake Tonight, released March 27, is a welcome burst of sunlight during a dreary time, covering new love, the joys of being alone in nature, and building emotional support in relationships.
“When I listen to it now, you can hear that it was made in the summer,” says Origone, who was inspired by Tyler the Creator’s Igor during the creation of the four-track EP. The super catchy “Easily” describes a relationship that “comes naturally,” while “Circles” is about working through conflict with a partner and coming out stronger on the other side. “Stillness” was inspired by a road trip taken by Clowes and deals with “appreciating feeling lonely and realizing it’s OK to feel lonely,” she says, and “Blissfully Unaware” addresses the way people turn a blind eye to climate change and other world issues, featuring a rap interlude by the members’ friend Mercy (MEI).
The duo has a playful, flirty sound, with quirky percussion, warped vocals, and lo-fi electronic instrumentals. Even the songs that deal with heavier subjects make you want to get up and dance around your living room.
Origone and Clowes’ close friendship allows them to sing about deeply personal topics they’ve discussed with each other. “As soon as you start working with someone else, you have to start talking about some things that you don’t really talk to many people about if you really want to write a good song,” says Origone.
The name of their band comes from Clowes’ love of bees, plus the desire to convey a tainted sweetness. “Some of the music is quite peaceful and nice to listen to, but if we used the word ‘honey’ in the band name, it has a risk of sounding too sweet, and I guess that’s why we decided to use ‘bad,’ because it’s a juxtaposition of two things,” Origone explains. For similar reasons, they describe themselves on social media as “a jar of honey traveling through space.”
“It’s sweet but with an extra something — it’s open for interpretation,” says Origone. The members’ image fits this sentiment as well; their style is the epitome of twee.
Bad Honey has released a few EPs previously — In Limerence and Better in Time — and is already at work on new music. Awake Tonight came out at an opportune time, as the band hopes it makes people feel “a bit lighter about the whole situation that’s happening,” says Origone. “Music kind of relaxes me and brings me into myself a bit more, and so I hope people can find a nice, sunny side in themselves with they listen to it.”
Follow Bad Honey on Facebook for ongoing updates.
