Honeywheel

Athens, GA, is full of many great bands so it’s hard to pick a favorite one, but this week I’ll introduce you to Honeywheel. This four-piece rock band consists of Blake Kole (Drums), Jacob St. Amand (Guitar, Keyboard, Production), Jake Pokalsky (Bass, Vocals, Production), and Shubbham Kadam (Guitar, Vocals). The band recently released their EP Shadowboxing, and my current favorite song off of it would be “Velvet Diver.” Check out the interview below to find out more about the band and what music they are currently listening to.

VM: First off, tell me about the band. How/when did it come together, where did the name come from, etc.

HW: We formed the summer following our freshman year of college. Jacob St. Amand and Jake Pokalsky (longtime friends) met Shubham Kadam at a Semi-Formal for Sigma Kappa. After talking with each other and realizing a common love for music and performance, they decided to meet up and jam. Shubham brought his longtime friend Blake Cole to the jam as well, and the rest is history.

VM: What is the writing/music making process usually like?

HW: Some songs start off as jams in a band setting while other songs are built around a “skeleton song” (basic structure and chord/ideas) that one of us brings to the table. Sometimes the process is very quick, while other times songs can take several weeks.

VM: Who are your biggest musical influences?

HW (Jacob): Hard to say because the influences are so widely varied. I’ve always been a big heavy metal fan, bringing in influences from bands like Gojira (Blakes also a fan) and Intronaut, as well as influences from artist like Pink Floyd, Chon and Philip Glass to name a few. I know Shubham is a huge Radiohead fan and Blake loves the band This Town Needs Guns (aka TTNG). Jake likes Funk and Soul music a lot (Al Green, Curtis Mayfield, Vulfpeck), as well as most of the bands I just listed for everyone else. He also really likes Led Zeppelin and Matt Corby.

HW (Blake): I draw inspiration from a sort of eclectic pool of styles as well, with a common element being a creative rhythm section. Groups that do it for me: Hiatus Kaiyote, TTNG, Flying Lotus, Toe, Gojira, and Tool.

VM: If you could only recommend one song off of your EP to someone which would it be?

HW: It’s impossible to say. The EP tries to capture a lot of different styles and sounds within four songs, so depending on what the listener is into, he/she may prefer one over another.

VM: Tell us a little bit more about the EP.

HW: It was a completely independent project. Jacob St. Amand and Jake Pokalsky handled all of the recording and mixing of the EP, which was both a trying and rewarding process. We went to Tom Lewis for the mastering who did an incredible job, mastering the EP at 1093 Studio.

VM: I know your EP was just released last week so it may be too soon to ask, but is there any new music in the works?

HW: We have actually never stopped writing new music! While the focus in the coming months will be to promote the EP, we are also thinking ahead about a full length album.

VM: Out of the venues you’ve played so far as a band, which was your favorite and why?

HW: We all have different preferences, but we always seem to have a fun time at Caledonia and Live Wire. Caledonia has that grungey rock and roll feel, while Live Wire has an incredible stage, with top notch live production.

VM: Any shows coming up?

HW: We just had our EP Release Party in conjunction with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Lite the Night Walk at Live Wire on Friday October 21st. We’ll be playing with Orange Constant and Funk Rex at the Caledonia for Medlife’s benefit concert on November 17th.





UPCOMING SHOWS:

November 17th @ Caledonia Lounge in Athens, Georgia

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Check out what Honeywheel is currently listening to!!

Jacob:

Oral – Agalloch
The Hawthorn Passage – Agalloch
Metamorphosis – Philip Glass
Dogs – Pink Floyd
Jake:

Telluric – Matt Corby
Shubham:

Siamese Dream – The Smashing Pumpkins
Blake:

Malika – Hiatus Kaiyote
Runner – From Indian Lakes
Homesick – New Madrid
Nakamarra – Hiatus Kaiyote
The Protest – Flying Lotus
Whatever, Whenever – TTNG
Be Quiet And Drive (Acoustic) – Deftones
Pink Rabbits – The National

by Stephanie Alejandro - VINYLMAG

By Kelsey Green

Many up and coming bands have called Athens home, bands like R.E.M and the B-52s. The members find each other, build up a sound, and then make their debut here. Athens’ newest progressive rock star, Honeywheel, is no different.

The members of Honeywheel are the University of Georgia’s own Jacob St. Amand, a 20-year-old economics major from Sandy Springs, Georgia, Blake Kole, a 20-year-old marketing major from Johns Creek, Georgia, Jake Pokalsky, a 20-year-old finance and management information system major from Atlanta, and Shaubam Kadam, a 20-year-old public relations and political science major from Johns Creek, Georgia.

St. Amand and Pokalsky have known each other since sixth grade, but it wasn’t until the Sigma Kappa formal last spring did they find future band mate Kadam. During some small talk, they discovered that Kadam and St. Amand both played guitar while Pokalsky played bass, and they would be living near one another starting that summer. Then the all too expected phrase, “we gotta jam,” was exclaimed by Kadam, and they did just that.
Then, a few jam sessions later, Kadam brought long-time friend and drummer, Kole, to play as well, and the group fell into place. “We had no intention of forming a band, but it happened so naturally” St. Amand said. So, in May 2015, the band Honeywheel was born.

Since then, the guys have been working on their music non-stop. Picking up gigs wherever they can, and, when they can’t, they go to Live Wire to help get their name and music out to the Athens community. At their first gig, Honeywheel had a crowd of 20 to 30 people, “which for a first gig is pretty incredible” said Kole.

When asked what inspired their music, a range of answers were received, from soul to pop and rap to bluegrass. “We see ourselves as a melting pot,” Kadam said. “The commonality in our music, [progressive rock] tastes helps us make a base layer for our music, and then our extreme tastes influence us and our unique individual style within our songs,” said Pokalsky.

New fans can find a taste of their original music through their newest demo, called “Desert,” on the official Honeywheel facebook page.

Hoping to minimize outside influences on their music that might come with a manager or studio manager, Honeywheel looks at the band as a start-up business and divides up the duties within the band. For example, Kadam follows through with his training from Grady and handles the band’s public relations affairs, St. Amand runs the financial side of the band, Pokalsky works to find gigs in and around the area, while Kole runs their social media sites.
The band even goes so far as to self-produce their own music. Through their side business, Ruth Street Productions, Honeywheel hopes to have an EP out sometime around February 2016. Right now, they are working on their fifth original song, and, when they aren’t playing gigs downtown or practicing, they are working on recording, not only their own material, but also helping other new bands as well. Honeywheel opens Ruth Street Productions to other Athens bands to come in to mix. “It’s a tough industry; not a lot of money is made off loyalties. So this is our way of trying to help other great bands to start recording,” Pokalsky said.

With aspirations of one day playing at the Georgia Theatre and hoping to be able to go on a tour before their senior year, Pokalsky explains that Honeywheel is willing to take it “as far as we can go,” but, as long as the fans come, they promise to stick it out. For now their hopes are to continue to draw crowds and have their fans leaving their show with a strong, positive emotional response.

For more information, visit the bands Facebook site and look forward to their new EP in 2016! - Ugazine