I remember when I was younger and thinking about LA and LA culture, there were a few things I just assumed, especially when growing up. I assumed to grow up in Los Angeles meant that you were either one of the sun-kissed blessed folk to come out of The O.C, your hip-hop education came right outta Long Beach or Compton, or you longed for the sophistication of the east coast. Obviously, now I’m older and have been able to connect with and travel out to that part of the world, being able to be exposed to the wealth of talented songwriters and musicians dotted down the US west coast and bring their sounds back home is an opportunity I love further exploring whenever it comes by.
Which brings me to Honeywater. First coming across the duo during recent travels through Europe, their music struck a chord rather immediately. Having wanted to find some music that stuck out amid all the noise without being forceful itself, Honeywater’s self-titled debut did just that: four songs of beautifully crafted folk music displaying solid potential. The songs are simple and well within the genre, but there’s a purity and bitter sweetness behind some of the material that had me initially assuming this was an offering from an older act, further along in their career, not out on their first round.
So, what about them? On paper, it’s simple. The LA act is Zander Hawley and Amandla Stenberg. Hawley currently lives in Nashville where he attends college, while Stenberg is travelling for projects of her own. Dig a little deeper and it won’t take long to figure out where you’ve read Stenberg’s name before: the 17 year old is part of Hollywood’s current crop of bright young things, with her current social activism and creative projects edging on overshadowing her breakout film role in The Hunger Games franchise. Honeywater however, is something entirely its own though – it’s been a platform for both Hawley and Stenberg to form a fast friendship, explore their musicianship and produce some great music from a young age.
“Zander came to me when I was in ninth grade,” Stenberg says of her first link up with Hawley. “He basically wanted me to play violin on a song with him for a talent show at our school. The song was “The Ocean”, by The Bravery. We had never really talked before, but I was the only person at school who played violin. About a year after that, Zander hit me up again to play a full show at a real venue. It was nerve-wracking and pushed me to grow so much. I honestly wasn’t that into folk music, but Zander’s songs really hit me and collaborating with him was so exciting.”
Hawley recalls their first experience performing together as being one that brought them closer as they decided to properly start making music of their own together.
“As far as shared interest goes, Amandla and I have pretty different tastes in music,” the songwriter says. “I think what creatively spurred us really was the fact that we were both starting out from the same place. Besides a few violin recitals at her music school, Amandla didn’t really have any musical performance experience and I had none whatsoever. You might think that’d hurt us, but it really helped bring us a lot closer and understand each other a lot better. I felt that I could depend on her so much more, because she was just as nervous and unsure about the whole thing as I was. Writing the songs was really what turned us into close friends, because they were all pretty personal. She would come over and I’d play her whatever I’d written and she would just get it, on an emotional and musical level.”
“Zander always shows me his song ideas and the new things he’s working on,” Stenberg adds, noting Honeywater’s creative process. “He’s incredibly independent and constantly growing and making up new things – I think it’s helpful when all I do is give him encouragement. I then write the violin arrangements and harmonies and bounce my ideas off of him. A lot of it comes from improvisation and finding what we like best through trial and error.”
For both Hawley and Stenberg, music had long been in their blood prior to linking up as Honeywater, Stenberg having been drawn to the violin from an early age and Hawley having been writing songs well before first approaching Amandla for that school talent show.
“I started writing songs about a year and a half before that first real show we played,” he says. “I started writing good songs about half a year after that show.”
“I grew up in a musical family,” Stenberg says.”[I] always played instruments and then started playing classical violin in third grade. When I got to sixth grade, I quit. I was tired of the rigid structure. It wasn’t until a couple of years later that I started playing again, but this time by learning how to improvise and find my personal style. Through Honeywater, my musical voice has developed so much more.”
So, fast forward to June 2015, when the recording of the Honeywater EP went down. The duo had been landing shows in LA for a good while in the lead up, consistently honing their craft on a live front, accumulating fans of their own and cutting their teeth as musicians in a local industry that is brimming with fellow musicians and artists all aiming to have their voices and music heard. As for how easy or challenging it’s been to build a name for themselves over the past few years, Honeywater admit they’ve been lucky to do their thing at some great venues.
“West Hollywood has some killer venues for singer-songwriter types and folk acts,” Hawley says. “We cut our teeth in places like Room 5 and Genghis Cohen, and then played in a concrete box called Amplyfi once we started experimenting with our live sound a little more. My personal musical deity is Phoebe Bridgers; she is the queen of the Los Angeles singer-songwriter scene and earlier this year, she released a three-track single produced by Ryan Adams. Amandla and I had the pleasure of opening for her a few times.”
“I have to agree,” Stenberg adds. “Phoebe Bridgers is a legend. Those Amplyfi shows were the bomb.”
When it came to settling on a defined tracklist for the EP then, following a solid amount of gigging, Honeywater had the advantage of deliberating which songs had been translating better live over some others.
“We had been playing live shows for about two years before recording the EP in June of 2015,” Hawley says. “Over that time, our roster of songs changed as we did and as my songwriting did. When it came to selecting which four to record, we just chose the ones that we felt had the most impact at those live shows.”
“We also picked out the songs that showed diversity and captured different vibes.” Stenberg agrees. “I feel like the EP tells a story. “7 Hours” [in particular] has always captured my heart. When Zander first played it for me, I died a little. Finding the harmonies came so easily. That was when I first discovered that I could harmonise with my violin over Zander’s vocals.”
“All of those songs have a really special place in my heart,” Hawley says of the EP’s material. “I would have to say “Hope” [stands out]. That song was really the catalyst that launched us forward as a band. We played that at just about every show and every time I hear it, I’m overwhelmed with nostalgia.”
The duo launched the Honeywater EP back in August, fleshing out their live line up with bass and drums for the event. Packing out the room at Timewarp Records, the duo remembers the experience (“Smelled like weed too,” says Hawley) as one being a little bit of a rollercoaster of emotions.
“That show was sort of a nightmare until it wasn’t.” Hawley remembers. “We had to wait outside the venue for about an hour before we loaded our gear in and then our opener went half an hour past our scheduled start time. But once we got up there, it was one of the best shows we ever played. I have to mention our bass player Sebastian [Jones], who also produced and played several instruments on the EP, along with our drummer for that show, my dear friend Marshall Vore.”
“It was a sweaty room filled with friends and love.” Stenberg says. “It was tinged with bittersweet sadness, because it was our last show before Zander went off to college.”
For the two best friends whose band name came as a result of running out of tea at a summer camp (Stenberg turned to hot water and honey instead), it would seem that the momentum they’ve gotten behind themselves is only continuing to build. But, as is the nature of these things, they’ve both had to devote time to other commitments, whether it be further studies, solo songwriting or fuelling a burgeoning Hollywood career. Not two young individuals to rest on any laurels though, Honeywater have got some goods still to come yet.
“We’re on temporary hiatus,” Hawley admits. “Just by nature of me being in college in Nashville and Amandla travelling, making movies, being a gorgeous model…but when we’re both back in LA this summer, Honeywater will be back with a vengeance. Or, I guess as much of a vengeance as sweet H2O can have.”
Says his partner in crime Stenberg, “Y’all best be ready.”
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You can buy the Honeywater EP on iTunes or stream it on Spotify. Follow the band on Facebook.
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