I hate CDs. I don’t want them around anymore, in any facet of my life. The Honey Hush sent in a very nicely packaged 7”, tasteful and modest with a charming border. Here is how they define their sound:

Writing music which takes cues from ‘60s psychedelia to bluesy rock ‘n rollers, they are still focused on creating a sound which moves beyond mere imitation toward songs which will stand on their own in our modern age.

It’s impossible to exist within the set of rock and roll parameters that the Honey Hush has chosen for themselves without being almost entirely derivative of what’s been happening in that genre, relatively unchanged, for the last 40 years. That’s kind of the nature of blues and blues rock – the same handfuls of ideas tossed around in different fashions and orders ad nauseam until every song sounds like any number of others. Though the Honey Hush may be striving to keep their tunes fresh and modern their songs instantly and undeniably transport the listener back 40 years to the prime era of the Rolling Stones. “Tenement Grove” is for all intents and purposes a Rolling Stones song, but it’s one of the better Rolling Stones songs, so at least it feels like they chose a good track to cover. “Beggar Boy” exists somewhere between “Gimmie Shelter” and the Black Crowes, not only sounding like the genre’s prime beginnings but also the later waves of influence it begot. At times the male/female vocals with the overdriven bluesy guitar hint at Black Mountain, but unlike Black Mountain the Honey Hush never take any chances, never explore new territory. As the 7” is a limited medium, and this is but an introduction to the band, I’ll excuse them for not giving me a sprawling psychedelic epic, but at the very least I want something that feels new, even if it’s wearing vintage clothes. Right now the Honey Hush is still playing dress up, not quite sure how to integrate those retro threads into an appropriate outfit for today. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but if you want to sound just like the good old days you need to make sure you’re as good or better, otherwise you’re not giving a good enough reason to pay attention.