The Long Honeymoon is releasing new EP called, The Risk of Happiness, just months after releasing their first full album together, The World is Waiting. I’m just glad the world didn’t have to wait too much longer for these four great songs and it’s fun to hear a band so enthusiastic about their music. You can see them play live April 24 at the Hook and Ladder.
Please tell us about the band. Each member has such a rich history, but what got you all together?
Lee: Adam and I started writing songs together when things opened up after the pandemic, in 2021. We’d known each other for years – our bands used to play shows together once in a while, and during Covid, Adam was posting his record collection on Instagram, an album a day.. I was following along and I noticed that we had a lot of overlapping tastes – besides bands like the Beatles and Stevie Wonder, we both loved bands like Teenage Fanclub, The Beautiful South, and The Smiths. One day I asked Adam if he’d be open to trying to write a few songs together, and he agreed to give it a try. We wrote “My First Mistake” in our first session, which ended up being the first song on our album “The World is Waiting.”
Anyway, after about a year, we had 15 songs or so, and Adam suggested we put together a band – it was the natural progression of what we were doing. The Long Honeymoon is made up of musicians we’d played with in other bands, and some friends we’d met along the way. Everyone in the band contributes to our songs and our sound, and we all have enough experience to know how lucky we are to have found each other.
The Risk of Happiness Sounds like a conversation in song. I love the back and forth. What gave you that idea? It makes the song feel like a celebration.
Adam: The Risk Of Happiness is a song about the songwriting partnership between Lee and I so it was only natural to have the back and forth between the two of us. But when you have a band with several very good singers, spreading the wealth is something we enjoy doing, so that response part went to Kristin. I take the melody in the chorus with Lee and Kristin adding harmonies. I love that you felt the song was a celebration, because that’s exactly what it is. It’s a celebration of our creative process but it’s also vague enough that people can interpret the celebration in any way they want to.
What was the inspiration for When I Say Baby? And whose idea was it? Feels vaguely feminist!
Lee: Vaguely feminist sounds good to me! The lyrics are meant to be playful, of course. I was thinking about how the singers of so many songs – usually men – refer to their lovers as “baby,” and it seemed like we might consider a word that felt a little bit more nuanced, or mature. My wife, for example, does not want to be called “baby.”
So I was having fun with the different words we use to describe our sweethearts – honey, sugar, sweetie, and so on. And then, of course, I thought of Ronnie Spector, whose “Be My Baby” is one of the greatest songs of all time, and I thought, “well, there are some exceptions” to the rule.
As it says in the song, the word “love” covers my feelings pretty well.
In some ways, this feels like a super group I wonder how your collective experience in different bands informs how you play together? Or even just how you are together as a band? Any wisdom you might share with newer bands?
Adam: Yes we all come from previous bands. Lee and Volney played together in Lee Rude. Kristin, Mike and I came from The Humbugs. Mike and Eric played in Atomic Flea. I knew Dennis from a mutual friend and he had subbed for another band I play in called The Bazillions. So we all have experience playing in other bands for years. Still there was a bit of a learning curve because none of us had played in a band with 7 band members. Knowing when not to play became as important as knowing what to play. My advice to younger bands has always been to play with people you can hang out with. Yes, they have to be able to play, but don’t bring someone into the band just because they’re a great player. If you can’t see yourself getting in the van with someone, don’t be in a band with them.
Please tell us about the upcoming EP release show.
Lee: We recorded 15 songs for the record “The World is Waiting,” but we only had room for 11 on the album. We picked the ones that went best together, and that reflected the mood of the album we wanted to make. But we felt strongly about the songs that were left over, and we wanted them to have their time in the sun too. The time has come!
We’re super excited to be releasing the EP on all digital services this Friday, April 24, and we’re especially excited to celebrate the release with a show at the Hook and Ladder with two other bands we love – The de’Lindas and Famous volcanoes. It’s going to be a great night.
Mostly Minnesota 