honne

Flora Rowe

Honne are the London based duo behind these synth heavy, drum beating, soulful electronic tunes. The name comes from the Japanese for ‘true feelings’, which couldn’t be more suitable as an accidental statement of honesty. Old friends who started jamming while at university together, the duo describe their music as ‘warm and sensual, late night vibes, serious babymaking sounds’ and these original qualities are what brought them fame. Their 80s vibe encapsulates all your feelings of past heartbreak and it is not difficult to understand why they are known for their lovemaking appropriation.

Listen to Warm on a Cold Night, the title shows you what you’re going to get; a silky-smooth jam that feels as wistful as it does fresh. It opens up with an old school radio introduction, which sets the mood of this sultry melody. Taken from their first EP, it is easy to see why they made such a big initial impact. Their newly gained attention made them a sensational feature of BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend line up in 2015 and they are due to go on a festival tour in 2016. By the time they had released their first two EPs, Honne had formed their own identity. While they have been inundated with offers to use state of the art studios, they stick with their east-London home studio to avoid rushing their sound. They are self-described ‘tweakers rather than twerkers’; they keep adjusting a song until they realise their original sound is just how they want it. It is not solely their music which gains attention; their music video for ‘All in The Value’ won an award at the Independent Film Festival:

The video depicts the final moments in a relationship; the director Geej Ower captures the sadness, intimacy, guilt and anger, which surround the shattering moments of heartbreak. Dance is exploited here as a form of communication, where certain expressions cannot just be conveyed through words. Written while James worked as a school guitar teacher, All In The Value gives a dark look into love and intimacy, where one girl falls in love with another man in full sight of her boyfriend. Love the Jobs You Hate illustrates the frustrations and limitations of modern working life, which they may have experienced in their 9 to 5 jobs, while laying on the funk. Despite its depressing potential, it exhibits a catchy dance beat with tropical synths and it is a prime example of their smooth soulful vocals. Each of their songs has a distinct vibe, which is relaxed and easy going; Honne effortlessly pen down solid tracks which make you want to sit back and relax and ‘Top to Toe’ is no exception.

The combination of each velvety piano chord, the heartfelt lyrics and sultry tempo make another un-missable tune. Although they have every opportunity to be blasted across pirate radio stations around Bow at 1am, these boys have been gaining far too much attention for just that. Honne have managed to create unimaginably catchy songs and after listening to a couple of their tunes you can see why they pride themselves on their ‘babymaking’ vibes. Expect big things.