Black Honey (song)

The American post-hardcore band Thrice went on hiatus in 2012, following a spring tour to support their 2011 album Major/Minor.[4] During their break, drummer Riley Breckenridge performed with grindcore act Pig Destroyer,[5] while bassist Eddie Breckenridge joined the alternative rock band Angels & Airwaves.[6] Reunion rumors began during a March 2014 Reddit AMA session, when lead vocalist Dustin Kensrue said that future touring was "very, very likely," and was optimistic that Thrice would record more music.[7] That December, the band announced their reunion by uploading an image reading "Thrice 2015" to their official website.[8] Lead guitarist Teppei Teranishi later revealed that he and Kensrue were inspired to reunite the band after attending a Brand New concert in Seattle together, and an "I miss you" text quickly "snowballed" into conversations about performing and writing new music.[9]

"Black Honey" was one of the first songs the band wrote upon reuniting.[10] Teranishi originally wrote the main riff on an acoustic guitar during the band's hiatus, before turning it into a "big rock song."[11] The lyrics were inspired by an image that "popped into" Kensrue's head, depicting "someone continually swatting at a swarm of bees to get their honey, but somehow not understanding why they would sting back in return,"[10] adding that the image "seemed a fitting metaphor for much of U.S. foreign policy."[12] Kensrue later expanded on the metaphor, "We've built problem on problem on problem, and now we find ourselves with ISIS and people are like—maybe we’ll do more of the same! It hasn’t worked yet: so maybe we need more of holistic approach to what we’re doing."[13]

"Black Honey" was the second single from Thrice's return album, To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere.[14] The first, "Blood on the Sand," was released on March 24, 2016.[15] "Black Honey" premiered via NPR Music a month later, on April 27,[10] and was subsequently released to alternative rock and active rock radio formats on May 17.[16] It had a strong showing on rock radio upon its release, spending 32 weeks on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and peaking at #11 on November 5.[17] The song also spent 19 weeks on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, peaking at #37 on January 7, 2017;[18] and 20 weeks on the Rock & Alternative Airplay chart, peaking at #31 on November 19, 2016.[19] Black Honey was the first Thrice song to chart since "Image of the Invisible" in 2005.[17]

"Black Honey" debuted to a largely positive critical reception, with NPR's Lars Gotrich labeling it "a gloomy and propulsive piece of heavy drama," comparing it to Cave In, and Kensrue's voice to that of Soundgarden's Chris Cornell.[10] Chris Coplan of VultureHound referred to the song as a "grand, swelling rock ballad,"[23] while Emily Maxwell American Songwriter described it as "an eerie, raw track about trying to do the things you love in the face of negativity."[24] The political message of the song has drawn reference to previous Thrice releases, such as "The Sky is Falling" from The Alchemy Index Vols. III & IV (2007), and "Death From Above" and "Blood on the Sand" from To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere.[25]

Many album reviews of To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere singled out "Black Honey" as particularly worthy of praise. In an overall negative review of To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere, Dan Caffrey of Consequence of Sound referred to "Black Honey" "the sole song where Kensrue manages to be unconventional in his metaphor."[26] Jonah Bayer of Alternative Press referred to the track as the album's strongest, and drew comparisons to a "more technical version" of Alice In Chains.[27] Ali Shutler of DIY Mag praised the track's "hypnotic lure,"[28] while Tomas Doyle of Rock Sound called the production "gorgeous."[29]

The music video for "Black Honey" was released on May 17, 2016.[30] Directed by Y2K, a media group consisting of Jason Lester and Severiano Ramirez, and produced by Lester, the video depicts a boy (played by Jesse James Baldwin) sitting in the passenger seat of a car on a road trip. Various people are seen driving the car, including the members of Thrice and the boy's mother (played by Jennifer Lee Laks). The boy steps out of the car and into a field, where he is possessed by the sun and evaporates. Black honey is seen dripping from the leaves and fruits.[31] With over 47 million views, it is Thrice's most viewed music video.