Honeymoon Disease - Part Human, Mostly Beast (The Sign Records)

If you google Honeymoon Disease, you end up with a significant amount of information about sexually transmitted diseases… But that is not why we are here.

The first impression I get of Honeymoon Disease from the press release photo is that they have been transported directly from living in the seventies, girls with glorious long hair and guys with bad moustaches. The only tell-tale sign that it is 2017 and not 1977 are the piercings and tattoos on the girls. All band members are dressed in yellow and blue and when I find out they hail from Gothenburg, Sweden I understand the colour choices.

Formed in Gothenberg in 2014, the band was quickly recognised for their intense and high energy stage performances which led to the release of their first single Fast Love. The band commenced to collaborate with Swedish producer Ola Ersfjord (Imperial State Electric, Primordial, Tribulation, Dead Lord) later in 2014 and that resulted in the signing to Napalm Records in early 2015.

Their first album, The Transcendance, was released in November 2015 which was described as strongly forged in 70’s retro sound with a modern toughness. In early 2017 the band signed with The Sign Records, and released Electric Eel in May of 2017.

Part Human, Mostly Beast, is set for release on October 27, 2017. The album was recorded at Ganymeden Studio in Linköping, Sweden with producer Ola Ersfjord at the helm again. It is a 12 track, 70’s rock sounding record coming in at about 45 minutes and change, though only 3 of the tracks exceed 4 minutes.

Right from the kick off track Doing It Again I feel I have been transported back into the decade that I was born. The riffs sound very muddy in their distortion and that evokes memories of the seventies fuzzy sound. The performance is complete with some little licks thrown in for good measure. The solos and chord progression are just based in that simpler time and the girls in the band, Jenna (vocals, guitars) and Acid (guitar) play them well. The solos are solid throughout the album, once again with that fuzzy feel to them so reminiscent of that era.

The singing of Jenna is solid for the most part, but I find her singing limited in range and power compared with the picture I have in my mind of a band with this sound. In some songs her vocals sound strained as she tries to reach the highs the song has demanded. The rhythm section of Nick (bass) and Jimi (drums) keep up a lively tempo in most of the songs and are tight.

Lyrically the songs deal with drugs, love, breakups and cars. There are a number of influences showing in the songs as the band and producer Ola, found mutual interest in old soul records during production. This is quite obvious in the song Fly Bird, Fly High. It kicks off with a variation of the Chuck Berry, Johnny Be Good riff, which is completely contrast to the lyrics in this song. “Got to call my dealer on the telephone.”

For me though the album isn’t all to my taste, and I find myself drifting in and out. The seventies sound works for a few songs but after that becomes pastiche. The best tracks on the album for me are:

Doin It Again, Rymdvals, It’s Alright Coal Burnin’ and Electric Eel.