Chatting With Danielle Bouchard & Mitchy Collins of Oh Honey
Elizabith Costey ’16 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
Boston was recently graced by the presence of Oh Honey at Brighton Music Hall. We couldn’t get enough of them, so we talked to them about their EPs, their first headlining tour, and what’s next for the duo.
In your own words, how would you describe Oh, Honey’s sound?
Uplifting, feel good, optimistic, truthful pop.
All of your EPs in the Past (With Love, Sincerely Yours, and now Wish You Were Here,) are titled and formatted to resemble the end of postcards. Can you talk a little about the ideas and meaning behind this theme?
We had released With Love and were sitting on so much music and trying to decide how to move forward. We had this idea to release a series of EPs instead of an album to keep music coming out consistently and keep our fans excited, and we thought it would be cool if we themed it. With Love is a sign off on a letter, so it just made sense to title each EP in a similar way, and collectively call the series “Postcards.” Each EP is a personal letter to our fans.
If I’m not mistaken, this is Oh Honey’s first time headlining a big tour. (First of all, congratulations!) Second of all, how do you feel? Excited? Nervous?
Our first headliner was absolutely incredible. Yes, there’s a lot of pressure with being the headlining band, but getting to be onstage for an hour every night, playing songs we don’t normally get to, and watching the crowd sing back our lyrics– nothing compares. We had some really amazing shows on that tour– Boston is definitely one of our favorite cities by the way, and our show there was one of the best of the tour!
How different is headlining a show from being the opening act?
We’ve only ever been the opening band, so we are used to a cramped stage, a quick soundcheck, a 30 minute set, then kinda chillin for the rest of the night. Being the headliner comes with way more responsibility and much longer days, but the pay-off is awesome.
What are your favorite parts of touring? Specifically for this tour?
Scoping out new cities and finding cool local spots: thrift shops, record stores, coffee shops, local food. Getting to reconnect with friends and family who live across the country. Also, this tour we were lucky enough to travel in a bandwagon, which is essentially a mini-bus. We’ve always been in a 15 passenger van, so in comparison, this was pretty much heaven. We had a toaster oven, a tv, a coffee pot which saved our lives on those early mornings we played morning tv shows, and everyone had their own bunks which we could escape to if we needed our own space for a little while. But mostly, getting to meet our fans. Our true fans, the people who keep coming back show after show and continue to support us. They are the reason we get to live this crazy dream.
What are your least favorite parts of touring? Specifically for this tour?
D: The bandwagon was amazing, but since it’s essentially a box truck that was converted into a bus, it’s extremely bumpy. And I’m extremely clumsy. the combination was rough: I woke up every day with giant new bruises all over my body from getting thrown into walls when I was trying to walk around while we were moving. Also, being the only girl can sometimes have its challenges. As long as I don’t paint my nails in the bus, the guys are happy though!
M: Being away from loved ones and family and friends and feeling like your life back home sorta forgets about you. It can be hard to get back into the swing of normal life once tour ends. Also…lack of sleep.
What are your plans once you’ve finished the Postcards Across America Tour?
We [played] the Today Show on April 29th– [we were] so excited, so nervous, so many feels! Then we will be back and forth between Brooklyn and LA in May to write and record the final EP Until Next Time. In June we’ll be going out for a week in the south with Ingrid Michaelson, who we’re huge fans of. Then hopefully some more touring!
Tell us about the new music from your EP Wish You Were Here. Can you tell me a little about the writing process and the inspiration?
“Wish You Were Here” explores all the different ways you can miss someone, whether it’s wanting someone next to you to make the bad days a little easier, wanting so badly to get to know someone because you see the possibility of a future with them, messing up an important relationship and regretting it, or trying to make a relationship work despite distance and wishing that person was here next to you instead. All of our songs are based off of experiences we’ve had, in the past and presently. Honesty is apparent in songs, and we try to stay as truthful to ourselves and our lives as possible.
Do you have any other comments or information you’d like to share with ‘Oh, Honey’s’ Friends and fans?
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