Honeyblood - Babes Never Die

Rating:

An album that stands toe to toe with any other in its class.

'Album' of 'the Week'

Honeyblood are part of an exclusive club. A group of bands that many want to join, but few get the opportunity. While superstardom may appeal, it’s even better to be super-good. Their debut marked them out as a band with a bar so high it’d cause serious neck injuries to even peek over the top. With touch of line-up jiggery pokery along the way, their second full-length is virtually stratospheric.

Because while Honeyblood may not be headlining Wembley Arena, they’ll also never, ever let you down.

One blast of title track ‘Babes Never Die’ proves that. Defiant to the last, it rattles, rolls and shimmies like a pro. Both sugary sweet and salty, it’s a confrontation with a foe that gets to play all sides of the argument and win every time. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }

‘Ready For The Magic’ is the dictionary definition of banger - breaking speed limits as it races through, casting its voodoo as it passes - while ‘Justine, Misery Queen’ plays its refrain for keeps. It’s ‘Sister Wolf’ that stands out strongest, though. Prowling through the full moon, it packs all the claustrophobic tension of the hunt before blasting into a chorus that’s both subtle and brilliantly effective.

Of course, the thing about hidden gems is that they don’t have to stay hidden for long. The attention Honeyblood garnered a few years back was just the foundations for something bigger. ‘Babes Never Die’ sounds every inch that breakout moment. An album that stands toe to toe with any other in its class, it packs so much sass it’ll spook the competition without even throwing a punch. Stephen Ackroyd