Punk rockers Man Alive released a new single last month. Sharpening their sound with their first tune in nearly two years, Man Alive channel the isolating nature of anxiety and envy of those who know how to manage it, enlisting Honey Creek’s Chris Merisalo for a guest verse. If you’re one to worry yourself into worst-case scenarios, the message here will certainly resonate. “Shut Everything Off” is Man Alive’s first single from their upcoming debut LP. Keep an eye out!
Tag: Honey Creek
Social Cig Podcast #44 – Ellee of Honey Creek
Singer/songwriter Parker Schultz of indie band Social Cig has launched his own video podcast! Join Parker as he interviews various guests from in and around the Milwaukee music scene.
Today on the Social Cig Podcast, Parker sits down with Ellee Grim of Honey Creek. The two discuss Cactus Club, where Ellee is heavily involved, the idea of getting agents and labels involved with their music, independent music venues and the NIVA Association and much more. Check it out here!
VIDEO: Honey Creek – “iQuit”
Pop punks Honey Creek are currently touring in support of their new EP, “Self Preservation,” and amongst the big shows and impressive new music, they’ve also released the video for single “iQuit.” The song is about going through it, and either taking charge of the situation or, well, quitting. The song is a bop that will have you jumping along, and the video from Insite03 has the band together as a unit as well as individually performing at an empty house and a church. If you haven’t heard “Self Preservation” already, you need to do so, and check out “iQuit” here:
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 8/1-8/7/23
We’ve officially entered the dog days of summer, and the music is non-stop in this week’s B&E Weekly Jams presented by Bublr Bikes! This week, you can cool off with a playlist featuring a variety of sounds and styles, including tracks from Destinee Lynn, Tae & The Neighborly, Dev Diamond and many more. Don’t forget that you can check out more playlists by following Breaking And Entering on Spotify, get exclusive content on our Patreon, and check out this week’s playlist below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “Self Preservation”
Honey Creek’s highly anticipated EP, “Self Preservation,” is the first record from the pop punk band following their recent re-branding. The four tracks on this release leave a lasting impact, led by previous singles “Burnt Bitter” and “iQuit.” The title track and closer “Dollar Signs,” steal the show though, each packing a punch in a different way to close out the release. With this EP, Honey Creek asserts their pop punk dominance, and things are only going up from here. Check out “Self Preservation” below:
Bayshore Culver’s Pulls Out of Hyped Bug Moment Concert, Leaving Band and Fans Disappointed
Milwaukee band Bug Moment on Friday shared their hyped show at Culver’s set for July 22 was canceled after the fast food franchise decided to pull out.
The band first announced on Thursday they were playing at the Bayshore Culver’s in Glendale Wis. with Honey Creek, Chapped Lips, Excuse Me Who Are You? and Garden Home. The owner reached out 12 hours after the initial announcement and asked the band to cancel.
The band said they were “deeply saddened” the show would not go on, its members said on social media.
“After weeks of planning and going through all of the proper channels required to gather approval for this event, and receiving genuine excitement from the Bayshore Culver’s team, we announced our show to a truly overwhelming response. Initially, we shared the positivity surrounding the event with the Bayshore Culvers team and were met with gratitude for the hard work we had to put into this show, and media coverage the event had started to receive,” the band added.
Twelve hours later, Culvers had requested the show to be canceled with an explanation the company and the Bayshore franchise owner hadn’t considered noise level and safety and security risks, according to the band. Bug Moment offered to remedy the issues such as extra security, an RSVP link to control crowd size and add liability protections for the business, but the idea was “not being considered at the time,” band members said.
The band is working on securing a new location and is working with a few options, Bug Moment told Breaking and Entering.
The owner and operator of Bayshore Culver’s decided the restaurant “could not safely accommodate the event” after seeing the buzz around the announcement, a spokesperson for Culver’s told Breaking and Entering.
“Culver’s top priority is to deliver a safe and satisfactory dining experience to all of our guests. After gauging the strong response to the announcement and reassessing the size and scope of the potential concert, the owner-operator determined the restaurant unfortunately could not safely accommodate the event on its property. We’re sorry for any disappointment coming as a result of the cancellation,” the spokesperson added.
Bug Moment dropped their latest album, “The Flying Toad Circus,” in March. Check it out here.
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 6/20 – 6/26/23
With Summerfest on the horizon, it’s a great time to catch up on Milwaukee music. You can do that quickly with this week’s B&E Weekly Jams presented by Bublr Bikes! This week, check out the latest in Milwaukee music, with new tracks from Honey Creek, PeezSW, Riotnine! and more. Don’t forget that you can check out more playlists by following Breaking And Entering on Spotify, get exclusive content on our Patreon, and check out this week’s playlist below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “iQuit”
Honey Creek continue into a new era with their second single of the year out this week. The song is a testament to those times where you’ve felt like saying “fuck it” and quitting something that just isn’t worth all the stress and frustration despite your best efforts. Whether it’s a job, a relationship, family or whatever it is you’re dealing with, Honey Creek dismiss the bullshit with “iQuit”, channeling their infectious brand of pop punk into scenarios in which you’re ready to drop it all and choose yourself.
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 4/25 – 5/1/23
We’re on the cusp of summer, and Milwaukee’s music scene is wasting no time in delivering even more great music. Get the highlights in this week’s B&E Weekly Jams presented by Bublr Bikes! This week’s selections include fresh new music from Milwaukee artists, featuring Honey Creek, Rahn Harper, Genesis Renji and more! Don’t forget that you can check out more playlists by following Breaking And Entering on Spotify, get exclusive content on our Patreon, and check out this week’s playlist below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “Burnt Bitter”
Pop punks Honey Creek recently went through a massive rebranding involving all-white outfits and a secret set at Cactus Club for 414 Day. The first single of their new era is out today and it’s got all the excitement and dynamic that you know and love from Honey Creek, but the band takes things further by incorporating blaring synths and more vocal trade-offs to really round out their amplified sound. The song touches on being sick of yourself but being unable to let go of your ways. Honey Creek are louder, bolder and fiercer than ever with “Burnt Bitter” – stay posted for more to come from them soon!
Artist Spotlights: Pulpa de Guayaba, DarylAnne
Cactus Club hosted their annual 414 Day show on Friday night with a mixed-genre bill featuring Spider Creek, DarylAnne, Pulpa de Guayaba, Social Caterpillar and a secret opening set from Honey Creek.
Pulpa de Guayaba comprises of vocalist Dominick Dear, guitarists Juan Alvarez and Luis Arellano, bassist Miguel Sanchez, drummer Marco Zavala and saxophonist/flutist Michael Ruth. Formed in late 2019, the band’s style blends reggae, soul, Latin, R&B, jazz and rock music. “After Miguel and I played a Chill on the Hill gig, I asked him to come to Marco’s house and we had our first jam,” Alvarez recalls about the band’s formation. “From there, Miguel brought in Dominick.”
“The first time I ever met these guys, they were playing with Browns Crew over at Snifters,” Dear weighed in. “Miguel asked me if I wanted to come sing a song with them and we did “Ain’t No Sunshine” – it was wraps after that.”
The band’s name roughly means “guava pulp” in Spanish; guava is a tropical fruit native to Central America, northern South America and the Caribbean. “Guava is produced a lot where Marco is from and it reminds him of home,” Sanchez said. “The pulp is like the concentrate of everything we do; culturally and musically, it’s a lot of different things coming together.”
Pulpa de Guayaba’s debut EP “Short & Sweet” was released in May of last year. “We recorded it over at Cherry Pit Studios,” Alvarez explains. “The development of that EP was us trying to make something that represented all of influences the best that we could.”
Sanchez adds, “With the singles that we released first, they were like experiments that we recorded with our friend Mateo, who has been the sound engineer for a lot of our gigs and a great friend. With the EP, we really wanted to step up our game a little and get into an actual studio.”
“Eric at Cherry Pit really helped us find that final sound with our EP,” Dear said. “He made sure every song that we did was clean and had a good feel to it; he even helped me find my harmonies on some of them.”
On his lyrics, Dear reflects, “You might have noticed, I’ve written a lot of love songs (laughs). I’m a sucker for love, man. I like to write a lot about not only the experiences that I’m going through but also the experiences that I’ve recovered from. From getting into relationships from a young age, I’ve got a lot of pent-up energy to let out and express myself in that way. As I’ve grown, I’ve tried to incorporate a lot more influential sounds of R&B and classic rock styles; sometimes my lyrics are more pointed but I also like to have people experience my lyrics for themselves.”
“Dominick’s got a real ability to improvise,” Sanchez adds. “The first couple sessions we had together, we were just playing and jamming with ideas that we had. Two minutes in he was already making them into songs, adding lyrics, structures, verses, choruses – things that sounded good…without ever having heard our ideas before.”
The band is currently working on their debut full-length album in which they will expand upon the eclectic style that they’ve built thus far. “It’s going to be ten songs; a lot of them we’ve been playing for a while but some we’ve been developing more recently,” Sanchez shared.
Pulpa de Guayaba play an acoustic set at Pulaski Park on April 22nd for an Earth Day clean-up. Then the following day they play X-Ray Arcade, plus they have many more shows scheduled for summer yet to be announced.
DarylAnne is an R&B artist known for her powerful vocal performances. Amazingly, she did not grow up singing and got into making music only just a few years ago; last fall, she won first place for the Unsigned Only Music Competition.
“My mom was a musician and she was tough on criticism, which now I appreciate but at the time I had a lot of crippling fear (laughs),” DarylAnne recalls. “I give a lot of props to her because she’s a really great performer; I feel like I take on a lot of what she’s showed me over the years.”
It wasn’t until 2019 where she ran into a former coworker who’d asked her if she wanted to join him at Tymeless Studios downtown, when DarylAnne decided to start seriously pursuing music. “I got there and it was a real, professional setting and the engineer was so well-versed,” she said about that moment. “Once I felt confident moving forward with professional help, then I felt more comfortable with writing songs.”
Her debut album “Can’t Stay Here” was released in early 2022. On what went into it, DarylAnne reflects, “What’s crazy is that I never planned on doing music, and after I’d written my first song “Keep Going” I just kept writing and people liked what I was doing. I was in a very toxic relationship at that time and that was the source of a lot of material for the album; he was very resistant to the idea of me making music, and that to me was reaffirming to keep pushing. The album ended up helping me really break out of that situation.”
In fact, DarylAnne plans to drop the deluxe version of the album featuring some new tracks soon. “I’m still kind of a rookie in this industry, but now that I’ve gained more traction, I want to re-release the album with a couple love songs added.”
DarylAnne is performing for “A Tribute to Soul” at Trendsetters & JMJ on April 28th.
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 12/7 – 12/13/21
It’s gotten cold, and we’re looking towards the holidays, but that hasn’t stopped Milwaukee’s music scene from staying warm. This week’s B&E Weekly Jams presented by Bublr Bikes features new music from Reyna, Ian Ewing, Joe Quinto, Je’Love and many more. Don’t forget to follow Breaking And Entering on Spotify for more playlists, get exclusives on Patreon, and check out this week’s playlist below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “Hear Me Now”
Pop punk band Honey Creek dropped a new single today and it’s a real fist-pumper. The song tackles wanting the most out of life while you’re here, and in order to do that, you’ve got to live in the moment and take all the risks you can. It’s a jam that makes you want to do something crazy and exciting; you want it all and want it now. Honey Creek kick ass with “Hear Me Now.”
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Honey Creek
Long-running Franklin DIY venue JJ’s Bar and Grill hosted their first show back since quarantine Saturday night. Milwaukee bands Mud Dog and Honey Creek as well as Chicago’s Action/Adventure and Ohio’s Knavery all played sets for Honey Creek’s belated “A Whole Year in Transit” album release party.
Honey Creek consists of vocalist Chris Merisalo, guitar/keyboardist/vocalist Ellee Grim, bassist Dylan Ljujic, guitarist Sam Theno, and drummer Donnie Warren. A pop punk and emo band, they’ve been together since 2015 but have had their current lineup for just over two years. Their name comes from a creek behind Ljujic’s high school. The band’s debut full-length album “A Whole Year in Transit” came out at the beginning of quarantine; Ljujic explains what went into it.
“We just wanted to write songs with the new lineup, and we wrote a few songs – “Green Line, “D.O.G.D”, “Wishbone” and “The Time it Took” – and all of them were about moving forward. Then Ellee got in the mix and we decided to make it a full-length. We wrote the lyric “a whole year in transit” first in “Green Line” and then we wrote the song “A Whole Year in Transit” after that. It’s a quintessential growing-up kind of thing but giving it a certain motion and using themes like taking the bus to get from point A to point B, things like that.”
“It’s also about touring and traveling and experiencing new things,” Merisalo added. “We grew a lot with the new lineup and it became a whole year in the making.”
“We had a lot of shows booked up for 2020 and we were just gonna be on the move,” Ljujic said when asked about how COVID affected them. “The whole point was that we wanted to put out a record about movement, and doing a bunch of touring, and obviously that all went out the window. This was the new beginning of the transit era.”
Grim describes the band’s songwriting process.
“It was way different for “Transit” that it is now. Part of it was written, and then I came in as a co-writer but wasn’t in the band yet, and then we kind of wrapped it up that way. Now everything’s being made more collaboratively; everybody does something and every hand is in it.”
Honey Creek’s first new single since the record is “NPR” which came out this past July.
“That was our quarantine song,” Ljujic said. “We were stuck being unable to do anything and wrote it about hating your job.”
“That was our zoom song,” Grim added. “We did it fully virtually.”
“We wrote it without playing it as a band because Ellee was still in Boston,” Ljujic concluded.
The band’s most recent single “Midwest Summer” dropped just a few weeks ago, which is about the cycle of being a touring band.
“We started writing that one before “Transit” was even out,” Ljujic said.
Finally, Ljujic shares what the band is up to in the coming months.
“We got a weekend with Big Smile and Drying Out in November and then we’re doing two and a half weeks in December down south, and then we’ve got a lot more going on behind the scenes that hopefully we’ll be announcing soon.”
Honey Creek play X-Ray Arcade on November 18th.
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “Midwest Summer”
Pop punks Honey Creek have a new single out today. It’s a little jam about touring around as a band in the Midwest, spending your whole summer sleeping on strangers’ floors and waking up to pissed-off texts from your girlfriend. It’s the life you chose yet you’re always left wanting more. The song has subliminal humor to it while remaining earnest about what it’s like being a band in the region. Stay tuned for more to come from Honey Creek.
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “NPR”
Pop punk band Honey Creek have a new single out today. This one’s about the boringness of day to day life, and remaining uninterested in things others are interested in. Yet, you’re too exhausted to make any significant changes. Honey Creek tackle the constant tug-of-war between staying in and out of your comfort zone. We hope to hear more from them soon.
VIDEO: Mr. Nice Guy with Ellee Grim
Our Music Director, Ben Slowey, is more than on top of the local music scene. In addition to his work for Breaking And Entering, he also hosts the Mr. Nice Guy podcast, an interview-based show that reaches out to Milwaukeeans for conversations about what motivates them. Many of these shows fittingly involve the local music scene, and we’ll be sharing some of them here as well.
Today, Ben talks to singer-songwriter Ellee Grim, whose most recent single “New Moon / Coffee in the Shower” came out in October. They also play in pop punk band Honey Creek. They discussed Ellee’s move from Milwaukee to Boston, their experience interviewing bands at Warped Tour as a teen, Honey Creek’s new record “A Whole Year in Transit”, the recent solo singles, and her goal of going in a more dark pop direction. You can check out more episodes of Mr. Nice Guy on YouTube, and check out this interview below:
AUDIO: Mud Dog – “Extinction”
Hardcore punks Mud Dog are out with their new album this week. The band delivers gnarly riffs and devastating attitude that they’re known for. Featuring themes of hopelessness, punishment, uncertainty and unrelenting suffering, the band channels an onslaught of existential dread that will certainly resonate with many. Guest vocals from the singers of Honey Creek and Wits End are featured on a few tracks. We live in bleak era of history where peace of mind feels hard to come by; we constantly find ourselves fighting for both internal and external control and that’s exactly what the band gets at. It’s a powerful body of work from Mud Dog; we’re delighted to hear from the Milwaukee punk scene right now.
The Writers’ Room: 8/4/20
Join hosts Allen Halas and Ben Slowey every week for The Writers’ Room, featuring the latest in Milwaukee music. This week, we feature videos from Tru West, Social Caterpillar and Honey Creek! Subscribe to Breaking And Entering on YouTube for more episodes, and you can now watch The Writers’ Room live on Twitch every Tuesday at 5:00 to interact with us! Check out this week’s show below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “D.O.G.D.”
Pop-punkers Honey Creek have a new video out from their album, “A Whole Year In Transit”, detailing the struggles of being eternally busy trying to succeed. The band keeps a positive outlook, though, and that comes out in the fun-loving video for the single, which also features the guys on the road from show to show. Whether they’re hanging out at the arcade, throwing down with friends on the side of the van or on the road, Honey Creek are continuing to push themselves further and further with each release. Check out the video for “D.O.G.D.” below:
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 4/26 – 5/2/20
It’s another week of quarantine, and while things may be looking a little bleak outside, the Milwaukee music scene is getting brighter as we make our way both out of this situation and into the summertime. You can hear just a glimpse of all of the new music that came out this week in this edition of the B&E Weekly Jams presented by Bublr Bikes! This week, we’ve got new music from Reyna, Jillian’s Revenge, Armstrong Ransome and more! Don’t forget to check out the archive of weekly playlists by following Breaking And Entering on Spotify, and check out this week’s playlist below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “A Whole Year In Transit”
After several years of touring and playing shows, as well as some time to transition with lineup changes, Honey Creek’s first full length album is out now. “A Whole Year In Transit” is a fitting name for the pop punk act’s release, but the payoff was well worth the wait, with ten songs that feel tight from a group that has spent much of their formative years playing DIY shows on the road. Rather than teenage angst, the songs on this album feel like they inadvertently deal with growing up, including everything from partying on the east side, to the uncertainty of the band’s future on “Vibe Check”. Honey Creek is a band shaking off a busy transition, and only starting to hit their stride. Check out “A Whole Year In Transit” below:
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 12/1 – 12/7/19
We’re officially into the last month of the year, and the Milwaukee music scene is continuing to deliver as we close the book on 2019. Much of that is on display this week in our B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes. This week, we’ve got new music from Nile, Lil Chicken, J-Lamo and many more. Don’t forget that you can check out an archive of our weekly playlists by following Breaking And Entering on Spotify, and check out this week’s playlist below:
AUDIO: Honey Creek – “The Time It Took”
After some regrouping, pop punk act Honey Creek is back with a new song about, well, regrouping. “The Time It Took” is the band’s new single, with a title derivative of last year’s “The Time It Takes” EP. The song sounds well put together, with enough layering and production to make you feel like the band is signed to a label in the heyday of pop punk. That’s an encouraging sign, as the band is starting to ramp up productivity, including a two-week tour at the beginning of 2020. We’re sure to see more from the band in the coming months, and you can check out “The Time It Took” below:
B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes: 11/24 – 11/30/19
While there had been a bit of a lull in new Milwaukee music a few weeks ago, there’s plenty of new releases to check out in this week’s B&E Weekly Jams Presented by Bublr Bikes! This week, check out brand new tracks from Klassik, Nile, Twan Mack, Honey Creek and more. Don’t forget that you can check out more Milwaukee music playlists by following Breaking And Entering on Spotify, and listen to this week’s playlist below:
