Honey Guide (AKA Jacob Andrews) is a new artist to me, however he’s part of Niall Summerton’s band, an artist I’ve reviewed in the past and really like. And Niall plays on this track. So this grabbed my attention.
I didn’t really know what to expect musically, Jacob describes what he does as having a freak folk/soft rock sound. So this was very much ‘take a listen and see I feel and think about the song’. First listen I really liked it, so I decided to review the track.
‘Oh Why?’ is a light, somewhat sad sounding folkish psychedelic pop song. It reminds me in places of The Monkees, although only slightly, and this no bad thing I love The Monkees. It also has hints of The Polyphonic Spree – horn, lovely light keys, a slightly jaunty thing going on.
Jacob has a great voice, his singing is light and pure, and the words of the song are right up there. The words are great, the song, like many great songs, tells a story. The blurb says that the song is ‘a dialogue between two friends about finally finding love then losing it again just as quickly as you found it. Resulting in looking to friends for advice on how to pick yourself back up when you’re feeling down about it’. So the bittersweet feel to the music really fits the words.
For a song that sounds so light, there’s actually a lot going on musically but at no point does it get crowded, there’s space in the way it’s put together.
Look this is a great, well written song, sang and played really well. I love it because it’s one of these songs where the words fit the music and the music fits the words. And it has an emotional impact way beyond what you might think when you start to listen to it. It’s the sort of song that should appeal to everyone, so give it a listen.
The info
Honey Guide is the musical moniker from Jacob Andrews, a Leeds based musician, songwriter and producer. He draws inspiration from contemporary artists such as Sam Evian, Chris Cohen, Andy Shauf and more. His Freak-Folk/Soft Rock sound provides a laid back, easy listening experience that paints a nostalgic, warm picture of Love, Sadness and all the sweeter things in-between.
‘Oh Why?’ was written/recorded/mixed by Jacob with a little help from Niall Summerton on the drums and Tom Kettleton on the saxophone.
