HUNNY have unveiled their new single, “ring in ur ear,” featuring beloved vocalist Justin Courtney Pierre of Motion City Soundtrack today. Serving as the final taste of their second record, Hunny’s New Planet Heaven out this Friday, the the upbeat, lo-fi punk tune is bursting with feel-good energy. Lyrically evoking a sense of nostalgia, it features sentimental songwriting that recalls a time of youth and carefree bliss. The song is accompanied by a campy music video depicting the members of HUNNY participating in an off-beat talent show.
On the back of a shimmering blend of new-wave sheen, shoegaze gloom and angular guitar rock that is underwritten with cheeky, California cool sensibilities, the childhood friends that make up HUNNY racked up millions of streams on their self-released 2015 EP, leading to a deal with Epitaph Records. After releasing their Carlos De La Garza (Paramore, Best Coast) produced debut album (2021), Homesick EP (2022) and multiple singles, the band tapped into the wide-eyed excitement and energy of those early years for Hunny’s New Planet Heaven.
A sense of comfort and nostalgia is there from the first single “action –> reaction,” in its transistor radio intro and undeniable vibrancy, its reclamation of youth and reverence for HUNNY’s hungrier, scrappier days. Guitarist Jake Goldstein says, “There’s a sense of distance but also warmth to all our favorite songs, and that’s an element we wanted to bring to the album: a longing for a missed opportunity or chance or youth or what the past might have given you.”
The group’s second LP for Epitaph finds them tightening their social circle and distilling their art down to its purest form yet. While the pandemic kept the band apart physically, they were closer than ever on an artistic level, writing and demoing nearly 100 ideas for LP2 that eventually made their way to longtime friend and collaborator Derek Ted (of New Planet Heaven studio, begetting the album’s title).
On the verge of entering their second decade together, it’s clear HUNNY’s greatest asset is their disinterest in doing anything besides what moves them. It’s afforded them great range as a band, the ability to naturally shapeshift on their own albums as well as win over audiences across the entire rock spectrum. Most importantly, it’s propelled them to be unapologetically themselves and trust in what’s gotten them this far.
Oct. 7 – Anaheim, CA – Chain Reaction
Oct. 8 – San Francisco, CA – Café Du Nord
Oct. 16 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
Oct. 18 – Dallas, TX – Three Links
Oct. 20 – Austin, TX – The Ballroom @ Spiderhouse
Oct. 29 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
Oct. 30 – Philadelphia, PA – Warehouse on Watts
Nov. 01 – Chicago, IL – Beat Kitchen
Nov. 02 – Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop
Nov. 04 – Toronto, ON – The Drake
Nov. 06 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
Nov. 19 – Mesa, AZ – Nile Theatre