Interview: Honey Revenge Lean into a Darker, Honest Era at Warped Tour

Pop-rock duo Honey Revenge, composed of lead vocalist Devon Papadol and guitarist Donny Lloyd, are tapping into a darker era that could take fans by surprise on their new sophomore album titled Loving and Losing, out on September 18 via Thriller Records. Since their pop-forward debut record, 2023’s Retrovision, the band have taken the alternative rock world by storm. Across 14 tracks, Papadol and Lloyd dive into themes of self-discovery, loss, and emotional duality, best illustrated by singles titled “Poison Apple Baby,” “Risk,” and recent single “Butterfly Effect.”

Leaning against red chairs in the artist alley section of the Vans Warped Tour media room, Papadol eagerly describes the reasons why the band has taken a different sonic turn.  Contemplating the best way to put it, Lloyd says that “selfishly’ and “personally”  the second record  is a statement of them being able to “actually” play the guitar. “Like, listen, I swear I can play.”

Lloyd continues, “For Dev, I feel like it wasn’t a maturity thing,” before letting Papadol chime in. Papadol adds that she goes back to something that her longtime friend Alex Windsor from Bad Cop, Bad Cop—who had been around for the conception of the band and was a guitar player in the band at one point—said to her—that the band should evolve over time like Pokemon.

‘I wanted us to  evolve like Pokemon, those original, tell-tale factors of Honey Revenge are still present, but you see that in the evolution of different Pokemon. I think she said that Evie was how she looked at it, that Evie was the evolution of it. I wrote a lot of the songs on Retrovision when I was younger than Donny is now, and you get your whole life to write your first album. I don’t feel like the same person I was when I wrote those songs. I’ve lived a lot of life; I’ve experienced a lot more good and bad (things), and I really wanted that to be visible and noticeable in this new era. Not to say we’re jaded, but we’re older, and we’re wiser. Sometimes a little bit of a different perception on life comes with getting older and wiser. Sometimes that is a little darker. It was natural.

We didn’t go into it with, ‘We want this to be depressing,’ or, ‘We want this to be sad or super angsty.’  We just wanted it to be the next step for us. I think we’re both influenced by heavier music, and I love a dark bedroom pop band and their songs are pretty sad but dancey. And I think that’s always been our goal. We just have a little less of a bubblegum pop thing going on. ” 

Formed in Los Angeles in 2021, the band grew out of the DIY community propelled by a loyal fanbase. Their debut album, Retrovison, saw the band gaining popularity for hit tracks like “Habitual,” “ Airhead,” and “Sensitive” which showcases the duo’s penchant for tapping into emo and pop sounds. The band has grown their social media presence and have shared the stage with acts such as The Home Team, Rain City Drive, State Champs, and Arrows in Action.

With Loving and Losing, the duo discusses the need “to control every little thing in our lives” when “sometimes the world has other plans in mind.”  Inspired by artists such as Brittney Spears, Remi Wolf, and Spiritbox, the band’s newest record seeks to expand the duo’s sound, with both saying that “Poison Apple Baby” was an attempt to craft “a metal version of a Britney Spears song.”  They also find inspiration in both EDM duo LMFAO and Kesha as they “want people to dance”  to their music as well. “For us, it’s about getting them (the fans) to share in our energy on stage”, says Papadol. 

For Papadol, color has always been an important factor when determining the image of the band. While the era of Retrovision was draped in shades of purple and pink, Papadol and Lloyd go with a darker shade of purple for this era. “I have had the purple hair planned out for a long time. My hair is a big part of the band, I fear. (laughs) I love it, but it’s also an identifiable thing about us. I had green hair for four years, and then from there, it made sense to go either blue or yellow, so I went yellow for Honey.

And then yellow and pink, then yellow and pink with yellow bangs, and then pink to purple. So I literally found the screenshot I had in 2021 of my hair inspiration for this, so it’s been a long time coming. For me, I see music in color. I knew that (with) this era, I wanted us to sound a little bit darker and a little bit more synth. You think of the ’80s when synths really had their moment in music, and you think of Prince, purple, velvet, and sparkles. I just wanted us to be glamorous, but still be pink and purple, but a little bit darker. All of my favorite bands had colors that I identified them with, and I really wanted that for Honey Revenge. ” 

The outfit are ecstatic to be performing at Warped Tour in Washington, D.C. this weekend. “It’s real cool, man. I’m excited because I never got to go to Warped before it stopped for a while. I learned about Warped, and I asked my dad if I could go, and he said no. And they never did it again. So, I’m glad to finally be here. We were here last year too. It’s a full-circle moment. Like, fuck you Dad, I’m doing it anyway,“ says Lloyd.

“For me, I always say it, but Warped Tour really changed the trajectory of my life. Coming to Warped in 2013 opened my eyes to the fact that there were people in this scene in general and that I had a community that I hadn’t tapped into just yet. To be here and feel like we’re so supported by Kevin Lyman and Amanda and the people running the festival is so flattering. On top of that, now coming back for our second year, I don’t feel as nervous. It feels very family-oriented, very high school reunion vibes, like all of your homies are here. It’s just good hangs all around. It’s a lot more relaxed. Last year, we did D.C. in the midst of a headliner, and it was the one day off on an eight-day stretch, so it wasn’t a day off at all, and it’s a lot calmer now. I feel like a seasoned professional now versus last year, for sure,” adds Papadol.

Next, the group head on the Idobi Summer School tour alongside Games We Play, Winona Fighter, South Arcade, and Chase Petra for a 25-date run that begins on June 19 in San Diego, CA and sees them make a stop in Long Beach, CA at a Vans Warped Tour festival date and finish up their tour in London with Twenty One Pilots at All Points East 2026.

Photo courtesy of Honey Revenge