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Music Review: Sugar and spice

Indie band adds edge to traditional folk sound

By Sarah Jones

Last Updated:9:24 PM EST 11/10/08 Section: Lifestyles
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Suzanne and Ben, a true duo, use their real life friendship and unique tastes to inspire their musical style.
Media Credit: Myspace.com
Suzanne and Ben, a true duo, use their real life friendship and unique tastes to inspire their musical style.

Don't be fooled by their sweet name - HoneyHoney is a folksy rock band with a bite or a sting, if you want to go there.

The cover of their new album, First Rodeo (released in stores on Nov. 4, features band members Suzanne Santo & Ben Jaffe and wordlessly describes the band's sound and personality. It isn't often that a cover features a violin, an electric guitar and a crow.

The personalities of Santo and Jaffe are clearly unique, as shown through the band's biography on MySpace.

Usually a band bio reads like something out of Public Relations 101, but HoneyHoney decided to go the "Friendship Test" route, answering questions about each other.

With answers like "Ben Jaffe came out of the womb crying as most babies do, except his crying had rhythm and incredible pitch," the result is an amusing look into what they are truly about. If it's a gimmick to set the band apart from other quirky indie artists (i.e. The Moldy Peaches, Iron and Wine), it works.

Their unique personalities transcend into their music as well. Santo's voice is a creamy mixture of classic jazz similar to the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Etta James, the sweetness of Nora Jones, and a little spice creating an edge of her own.

She sounds like she should be singing standards, but her contrast to the light almost Buddy Holly like guitar sound Jaffe lends to the band gives HoneyHoney all the difference.

The first song, "Black Crows," begins like a Colbie Caillat song, but don't let it stop you there. The up and down beat (similar to something like The Hush Sound) and the lyrics which read "black crows on the blue sky/ always making a mess/ and I/ awake in the morning tangled up in their nets/ laughing through phone lines/ stealing dreams from my head/ it's time to get up now/ I've been long left for dead," propel the song beyond something purely fun.

This song may sound innocent to the passive listener; however, HoneyHoney sings their lyrics in sweet irony.

In contrast, the first single off of the album, "Little Toy Gun," snarls in comparison to "Black Crows," beginning with a strumming guitar and a steady clinking beat.
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