Aubrey Haddard

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Aubrey Haddard’s Sweeter The Honey

Interview conducted on October 23, 2020

By Dan Locke

Modern age songster, singer and Fender Jazzmaster wielding bandleader, Aubrey Haddard had released her latest single and video for “Sweeter The Honey” — her second in a series of singles to be released in 2020. Premiered via Glide Magazine, they rave, “Set to eye-catching monochromatic visuals, the song balances dreamy indie pop cool with soft and soulful vocals. Haddard uses sparse instrumentation that balances just the right amount of airy funk with a touch of New Wave as a compliment to her intimate, sultry vocals. While the song itself is irresistibly catchy, we also get some fine guitar work from Haddard as she lays into a groovy little solo around the song’s halfway mark.”

What is your upbringing?

I had a fairly predictable childhood, grew up in the Hudson Valley, a relatively small family, middle child, public school. My parents have always been very open-minded and supportive of me, I lucked out.

How did you get your first guitar, and do you still have it?

My first acoustic was of course mini-sized, and yes it lives at my parents’ house in a primary-colored case embroidered with “Aubrey” on the front. My first electric I bought impulsively after playing a mentor’s telecaster one too many times and decided I needed one. It’s actually signed by queen Margaret Glaspy after heading straight from a gig to one of her shows.

What is the guitar of choice for you? What is the year, make, and model of that guitar? Does it have a name?

My guitar right now is a ’62 reissue Fender Jazzmaster. I’ve always gravitated towards Fender guitars for some reason. She doesn’t have a name, but apparently a gender.

What makes a good songwriter?

The songwriters I really admire and obsess over are artists who consistently evolve, have extensive catalogs, break their own patterns.

Why did you decide to do a video of a Kate Bush song (Running UP the Hill)?

Kate Bush has been such an inspiration as of late. The guys and I had been talking about covering that song for a long time and I think it was an easy way to channel some joy in our lives.

Tell me the idea behind the video for Sweeter the Honey?

The nature of this song has always been simple and we stayed the course for the video. I like to think if the song is the texture for the ears, the video is the texture for the eyes. Bob has such a good eye and is so easy to work with and I think as soon as we embraced the sort of tongue-in-cheek nature it fell into place pretty easily. The video conceptualizes the idea that things are not as they seem, almost distraction from the underlying warning. kind of like “come, see my fruit? have some. it might be poisonous. I might be too.

What are you’re feeling about streaming music?

The platform-artist relationship is definitely a strenuous one, but I am insanely grateful for the fans I’ve made through the streaming world. I’m not sure there will ever be a comfortable version of the music industry but knowledge is power and the more we know about how those kinds of institutions work, the better we can play the game.

Digital vs. vinyl?

Nothing beats putting a record on, dropping the needle, and lying on the floor. Is that dramatic? Yes.

Are you going to vote by mail or in person?

Early and in person and I encourage anyone reading this to do the same!

If you can’t do music what would you like to be doing?

I don’t think there’s anything that would actually make me incapable of playing music in some way. I do like using my hands though, I’d like to try my hand at making something of physical value.

Anything you would like to say in closing.