Brighton outfit Black Honey’s self-titled debut album was a glorious mixture of attitude and swagger, a indie punk whirlwind that evoked the likes of Elastica and Garbage and crashed into the top 40 UK albums chart. It teed them up for a frenzy of tour dates, an NME front cover appearance, and festival slots right the way across Europe. The departure of founding band member and drummer Tom Dewhurst at the end of 2019 might have derailed lesser bands, but Black Honey focused on completing their new record, Written & Directed, which landed this week.

Now composed of lead singer and guitarist Izzy Baxter Phillips, guitarist Chris Ostler, bassist Tommy Taylor, and drummer Alex Woodward, who replaced Dewhurst, Written & Directed sees Black Honey building on the success of their debut. In keeping with the cinematic theme, Written & Directed is The Godfather Part Two, compared to their Godfather first album. A Terminator 2: Judgement Day to its predecessor’s Terminator; The Empire Strikes Back to its A New Hope.

All of which is to say, it’s a record that takes everything their first offering did and makes it even better, channeling more of the energy and edge that made Black Honey stand out in the first place.

Opening track I Like The Way You Die dives straight into things, a thumping, confrontational affair co-written with The Libertines’ Carl Barat and The Prodigy’s Olly Burden, and there’s no let up on Run For Cover, which drives its snarling, off-kilter riffs into the heart of its pulsating bassline. Back Of The Bar calms things down, with Phillips luring you in with her rich vocals as simple riff builds into a soaring chorus. 

With their sights clearly on the big screen, I Do It To Myself feels like Black Honey’s pitch for a Bond theme, a glorious, spiralling, slow-burner of a track complete with horns and neat effects. Disinfect meanwhile dances along on Taylor’s growling bassline, before exploding into an absolute cacophony of sound – it’s a real highlight in an album of highpoints. And like all great film franchises, Written & Directed leaves you eagerly awaiting the next installment. 

Written & Directed tracklist:

1. I Like The Way You Die
2. Run For Cover
3. Beaches
4. Back Of The Bar
5. Believer
6. I Do It To Myself
7. Disinfect
8. Summer ‘92
9. Fire
10. Gabrielle

Watch the official video for Believer here.

Author: Joe Sharratt

Joe Sharratt is a writer and journalist based in the UK covering music, literature, sport, and travel.