Wildhoney // Topshelf Records

Perhaps it's because I've been listening to them near non-stop for so long now that it's all just blurred together, but at the time of my writing this, I can't seem to recall the moment I was first turned on to Baltimore's Wildhoney. Fortunately, everything else about them is immensely memorable. Effortlessly combining wall-of-sound power with delicate passages and gorgeous vocal melodies, Wildhoney simply have a wonderful knack for balancing blasts of distortion and dense textures with beautiful pop tunes and chiming guitar work. So it's with a great deal of elation that I am announcing that we'll be releasing a new EP for the band later this year!

The EP — which the band is currently recording right now — will serve as the follow-up to their debut full length album, Sleep Through It, released earlier this year through Deranged and Forward! Records along with 2014's Photobooth Records effort Seventeen Forever (which is where we initially got hooked on them, and is a great place to start if you've never listened to them before). When pressed to describe the direction of the new material, guitarist Joe Trainor simply states,"the [Topshelf] EP we are working on now is very uptempo and noisy" — which is fucking fine.

The group formed in late 2011, aiming to write pop songs with the energy and malcontent of hardcore punk, but without its entrenched masculinity — drawing influences from ‘60s girl groups, ‘80s post punk, indie pop, and shoegaze. The five-piece has since become one of the loudest — and sweetest — bands in its hometown of Baltimore.

The band begins a short tour with Whirr on April 12th in Richmond. Expect more Wildhoney dates in May, plus a full North American tour this summer. Upcoming dates and info below: