When considering Los Angeles outfit The Interrupters, take a moment to kindly forget jargon like “SoCal punk rock” or “next wave ska” or whatever perimeter you want to secure around them. A typical Interrupters gig feels like going to church where all the religious iconography is taken out and replaced with mirrors so the band and audience become one. Ignited by frontwoman Aimee Interrupter and the Bivona brothers’ indefatigable enthusiasm, attendees can see joy in action; discover strength in numbers; and feel bulletproof when facing the forces that haunt them. There are no victims or outcasts in attendance when the quartet are onstage: Transfixed by the legendary ‘80s 2 Tone ska movement and fueled with a contemporary energy that makes 180-bpm thrash-metallers seem positively slack, Aimee Interrupter and the Bivona brothers Kevin, Justin and Jesse blur the enthusiasm between band and audience in a way that’s equal parts dance party, cardio workout and personal therapy.
SPIRIT!, the third LP from HUNNY, is all about embracing the weird. It’s an album born from uncertainty and built on instinct – a testament to breaking free, starting over and blocking out the external noise. Now solely the project of longtime frontman Jason Yarger, HUNNY has shed its past shape to become something more fully itself. Fundamentally, the Epitaph-released SPIRIT! doesn’t reinvent the wheel for HUNNY as much as it keeps it rolling forward on a blend of hooky post-punk, gleaming synths and shout-along choruses. Yarger wrote and recorded the album almost entirely in his LA home studio, emptying his voice memos and Notes app of in-the-moment observationalism and off-the-cuff inspiration – all combining to strike the perfect balance between irreverent humor and indie-rock chic. It’s yet another chameleonic turn for HUNNY, long known for shapeshifting through genres and decades with style on fan favorites like 2019’s Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. and 2023’s new planet heaven – all while still sounding unmistakably like itself. For Yarger, the process of making SPIRIT! ultimately marks a pivotal shift, not just creatively, but in how he envisions the future of HUNNY. Free from compromise, he’s able to follow his instincts, allowing his music to unfold in unexpected ways. “I'm trying to be less precious with my songwriting,” he says. “I don't want anything to sound like HUNNY at this point – or, I simultaneously want nothing and everything to sound like HUNNY.”