Honeybadger (n) – a small, furry creature which at first appears a bit cute but if you so much as look at it funny is capable of ripping your face off in the blink of one of the eyes you used to have. Also a band from Greece…
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We’re all from Athens, Greece.
How did you meet?
We were going to the same bars, same gigs and listening to the same rock music. We have also been friends beforehand and each of us played in other bands. At the end music brought us together and formed Honeybadger.
How long have you been playing as a band?
We’ve been playing as a band since the end of 2014.
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
We always like to answer about this great creature. It’s from this animal which, most of the time, lives in the deserts of Africa and Asia. One of the most nasty and fearless animals you can see, Honeybadger doesn’t cower under any circumstances.
What are your influences?
Mostly the Stoner/Desert scene of the Palm Desert, California (Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, Fu Manchu, Truckfighters etc) along with bands like Black Sabbath, Monster Magnet, Clutch and various others.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
It’s heavy, desert rock with an alternative twist. The uniqueness comes from the way we play it. City boys from Athens play rock music inspired from the desert with their own personalities. That’s what makes the difference.
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
For the most part our lyrics are about broken human relationships, how society works, existential issues and, no doubt, having a good time with music.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
Someone told us that our performance is like a big concrete mixer coming your way. We’d say we have played more than 20 shows and we enjoyed all of them, small or big ones, with well known bands or not. Athens and Greece has a great rock scene and we are eager to take it also outside Greece.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
In our second gig ever, in a small live stage in Athens called “After Dark”, our lead guitarist Dimitris cut his hand with one of the strings of his guitar. He kept playing and ended up with a guitar full of blood! That was certainly very ROCK and a great show to .
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
We mostly play with Orange and Ampeg Amps and we have SG and Telecaster guitars with various fuzzy pedals (like Big Muffs). Bass is Fender Precision and the drum kit is as big as it gets!
What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
We are promoting our first two singles, named “That Feel” and “The Wolf” from our full album titled Pleasure Delayer. We think they are great songs that every rocker should give a listen and wait for the LP we worked on so much.
What are your plans for 2020?
First of all, survive the pandemic and help people around us getting over it. It’s essential to stay healthy to go on rehearsing, releasing our “Pleasure Delayer” LP (which is currently being mastered) and doing live shows whenever that’s possible again!
If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be ing and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before!
So, we think we’d like to be ed from The Same River, a great heavy/blues rock band from Athens that emerged recently with their first EP. Without any doubt, the band we’d like to is Queens of the Stone Age. Brilliant band, the live history and evolution of the desert sound.
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