Captivating the audience with beautiful harmonies and songs of both heartbreak and hope, Hayley Jane and the Hold On Honeys put on a stellar performance at Lark Hall in Albany on February 2nd. Collaborating with each other for the first time and trading sit-ins, the immediate chemistry between these two respective acts could be felt by everyone in the room.
Kicking off the show were Troy natives The Hold On Honeys, an indie folk minimalist vocal trio comprised of Emily Curro, Raya Malcolm and Shannon Rafferty. Trading leads and singing to their strengths, each member of the Honeys’ was given an equal chance to shine, but the true beauty came when this pitch-perfect trio sang together as one. After serenading the highly receptive audience with songs like “Case of You,” “Lullaby,” and “Maple Lane,” tender ballads about finding love and losing it, the gals then showed their more optimistic and fun-loving side with “Get High,” before sending us to intermission with “Down Home Girl.” A very enjoyable set, but it wouldn’t be the last time we’d see this promising up-and-coming act.
After a quick break in the action, it was officially time for Hayley Jane to grace the Lark Hall stage. A familiar face to the Albany crowd, Jane has been playing the area for years, mostly with The Primates behind her, or as part of Yes Darling with Ryan Montbleau. For this run however, Hayley enlisted an equally talented group of Burlington, VT based players that featured Josh Dobbs on keyboards and the former Swimmer rhythm section of Jack Vignone handling bass and Cotter Ellis on drums.
Opening her set with “Look to the Moon,” the pace quickly picked up when Hayley went into a bit of medley of mashup cover songs. Touching on a Cowboy Junkies-esq rendition of “Blue Moon Revisited” that took a ‘tasty’ left turn into the Italian classic “That’s Amore,” before eventually paying homage to the Grateful Dead with a beautiful version of “Ramble on Rose.”
Inviting you in with her undeniable charisma and vulnerability, Jayne’s storytelling between numbers left you feeling like you actually knew her. Looking around the room, you literally could see an entire audience falling in love. Working her way through a few songs from her most recent solo album, “Road Map” and “Soul Shaken,” from 2021’s Late Bloom, one of the most powerful and emotional highlights of the night came next when Hayley Jane performed “For Someone Who Needs It,” a song about depression, loneliness and reaching out for help. Fan shot footage of that can be seen below.
Taking her listeners on a humble journey, Hayley would tell the audience she was raised as a Baptist, and despite some groans, would give credit to her church choir for teaching her to sing. After belting out stellar versions of “Ignite” and “Madeline,” another of Jane’s favorite covers, Gregory Alan Isakov’s “Big Black Car” was next. Revealing a little more about herself, Jane would say the best thing she ever did was stop caring what other people think about her.
Essentially freeing her to be who she really is while also allowing a natural relationship to develop with the audience, Hayley confessed that “nerds rock” and are also “better in bed.” “Loose Screws” and “Madam Humphrey” would take a little walk on the wild side before Haley would play a new one called “Assembly of Words,” a song that was written while living in California and simultaneously going through the pandemic and a tough break-up. Some of her most vulnerable lyrics yet, afterwards she would admit to “feeling nervous” and “naked” during that one.
Picking the pace back up with another rocker from The Primates 2014 album Gasoline was “Hey Mister,” followed by an unreleased new song that was recently recorded with members of The Main Squeeze called “Girl.” Instead of leaving the stage and returning ala your typical encore however, Hayley would invite the members of the opening act, Hold On Honeys, to join her on stage for the remainder of the night. What then transpired was pure magic. Playing in Levon country and rambling together for the first time, Hayley and the Honeys’ uncorked an absolutely beautiful version of The Bands’ classic song “The Weight,” a rite of passage in this part of New York.
Feeling the combined energy of the women on stage, Hayley beamed with pleasantries for her new gal pals, even claiming she’d love to take them out on the road with her. As the curfew came and went, Jane would quickly check with Lark Hall staff if it was “Alright” to play one more. Once given the green light, Haley would quickly teach the Honey’s the chorus to the final song of the evening, “Make It Alright,” which was then jammed out to perfection, fusing multiple genres and stretching its legs all the way to the 15-minute mark and included “Wild Thing” teases for good measure.
After thanking everyone for coming out and wishing them well on their way home, the girls would convene near the center of the stage for a group hug and shared smiles. An exceptional performance all around and yet another reason to never miss a Thursday show at Lark Hall. An evening filled with genre bending, thought provoking, and at times heartbreaking music. Honest storytelling and songwriting, surprise collaborations, dancing, and beautiful down- home harmonies. Great medicine for these modern times indeed. While it remains to be seen how serious Jane is about taking her new friends out on the road, what we do know is that ‘Hayley and the Hold On Honeys’ sure has a nice ring to it.
Haley Jane | Albany, NY | 2/2/2023 | Lark Hall
Setlist: Look to the Moon, Ramble on Rose, Roadmap, For Someone Who Needs It, Ignite, Madeline, Big Black Car, Loose Screws, Soul Shaken, Madam Humphrey, Assembly of Words, Hey Mister, Girl
Encore: The Weight, Make It Alright
*Grateful Dead cover
**Gregory Alan Isakov cover
***The Band cover featuring The Hold On Honeys
**** Featuring The Hold On Honeys
Hold On Honeys | Albany, NY | 2/2/2023 | Lark Hall
Setlist: Wisely, Calling All My Children, TN River, Chicago, Getting Home, Case of You, Lullaby, I’m On Fire, Maple Lane, Knowing, Get High, Down Home Girl
