Features : Honey Made produces a magnificent single with a blend of R&B, funk, soul, rock and more

Honey Made bills itself as “an R&B band with funk, soul, jazz and hip-hop influences.” That’s just to start.

Like with “Ashy Pockets (My Mode),” a gloriously various, fun single about a guy stuck at work, watching the clock at a job he hates.

“It wasn’t the intention, but we went into like a G-funk, and a kind of a rock metal sound on that track,” said Donald McDonald, the group’s trombonist and one of its founders.

“And, you know, it’s kind of dark in that way, ’cause he’s in a dark place,” which is, of course, planted in the office but wanting to be somewhere else doing his thing but he can’t, ’cause he needs the money.

In this place man I hate my job.
Wasting time can’t wait to get off
I got my mask up, fake smile wearing on me
Check my watch, just a quarter to 3
What am I to do

A cast as widely varied as the music presents the story in the lyric video.

Honey Made is promoting the single to tease the EP it’s on, Charge It to the Band Fund. “Ashy Pockets (My Mode)” is a radio-friendly version of the pot-centric song they put out in 2020.

“It was very much about smoking weed and getting off work, so, when we were talking with the producer, John Ryan, he wanted a song to promote for radio, and he liked that song, but wanted to rework the arrangement and the lyrics,” said Donald.

The band has a lot to work with in making a multitude of musical genres work together to create something new.

In addition to Donald’s trombone, the band has: Brian Cokeley on keyboards, guitar and vocals; Lee Braverman, electric bass and guitar; Chris Barnes, drums and vocals; Mark Saldana, percussion; Dustin Hunter, baritone and tenor sax; Joseph Morrow, trumpet; and vocalists Willie Barnes II (Chris’s brother) and Donald Ford Jr.

“Ashy Pockets (My Mode)” has a tenth musician, Andrew Harkey on electric bass.

Honey Made is a band built for the stage. It has performed all over Texas from its base in Austin.

“We try not to do things on our records that we can’t reproduce live,” he said.

The band enjoys performing, and that is obvious even on the recordings.

“We all really enjoy playing live, and this, I would say, is the big payoff — we’d love to play more festivals, bigger venues, bigger fan base,” said Donald. “We also want to continue writing and arranging really good music that can translate for the person that is hearing us on the radio or digitally, but we will always have as a centerpiece being an exceptional live, performing band.”

They have a good start on a large catalogue of music for the listener to explore. Their work includes another EP, Couple Few, and a 10-track album, Brand New.

“We like a broad musical palette that excites the listener and the musician,” said Donald.

All these great musicians combine in a collaborative way to create the variety and energy of the band. Donald says the process usually begins with the band’s key writers, Willie, Donald Ford, or Chris and one or more of the musicians working on the music and lyrics.

“When it’s to the point where they think they have a full song ready, they’ll bring it to the band, and then it’s more collaborative between the other musicians as we work on the arrangement,” said Donald.

It’s as if the songs evolve organically out of the musicians and instruments.

“We try to keep egos out of the mix as much as possible.”

“Musically, we took some risks doing these hybrid kinds of sounds,” said Donald. “We have never been a single-genre kind of band. If you go back and listen to our previous full album, Brand New, you’ll hear a wide range of styles and genres, and Charge It to the Band Fund takes the evolution a little further by mixing genres within single songs.”

“But having said that, we’re not trying to create something esoteric either. We want listenable music that people can dance to, get into and feel.”

What they want, he said, is to get people excited about the music. Giving it a listen should accomplish that.

“We want to get people interested in coming to the show,” he said.

Connect to Honey Made on all platforms for new music, videos, and social posts, and check the website for show dates and venues that are within your travel range.

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