Suck the Honey “Five More Failures” 2018. Another uncharacteristic CD spin today: Five More Failures, the latest EP by Cincinnati’s two-piece garage rockers Suck the Honey, is only available on CD and digital download, though their last release was an amazing vinyl album produced by Romanus Records, the 2017 LP All Hail Having Failed. We saw Suck the Honey this past weekend at Jersey Street Music Festival in Horicon, WI and the songs they played from Five More Failures definitely did not fail. It’s a family-friendly fest so Lucas Frazier cleaned up the language (a lot, many many f-bombs in most songs; those of us who knew the real lyrics found his self-censors amusing) but the dark energy remained, even in the gorgeous sunshine of a perfect June evening.

They describe their music as “thick, fuzzy guitar tones and heavy, pounding drums. Where STH does it their own way is in the dynamics within each song, the switch from sad to angry, depressed to destructive.” Five More Failures delivers: “Choke” is pure brutality, the anger at the song’s antagonist drips like venom from the speakers, “Holy Water” has a killer hook and groove infused with heavy metal guitar and drums while maintaining a pop sensibility that could make it a hit (at least with fans of nihilism), and on “Don’t Deny It” Frazier spits out venom at lightning fast speeds. “No One’s Someone” is more atmospheric, sadly sparse and deeply melancholy for the first half of the song before exploding into a fit of musical and emotional fury, the pain and anger of loss palpable in Frazier’s wail. The EP concludes with “Run My Shit,” a light romp through sunny fields – kidding! It too is brutal, thrashing guitar and head-banging beats.

I’m casual friends with Lucas Frazier (guitar/vocals) and Jake Grove (drums) on social media and get small glimpses into their “real” lives. Their looks and personalities kinda remind me of the dichotomy between Loki and Thor: one dark, sinister (Frazier – though he has the most adorable little Pomeranian pup, I believe named Annie, and will post pictures of her giving him kisses, etc. so I guess not that sinister; he’s also a really enjoyable guy to chat with in person); the other lionesque bright blonde thunder power (Grove, though also down-to-earth, a dad, plays drums barefoot, etc) and the two mythical energies match and amplify each other to produce a force of nature.