Review: Beach Bunny’s ‘Honeymoon’

It’s rare to find a soundtrack that encapsulates the story of your life.

With the American Indie pop band Beach Bunny, teenagers can find solace and companionship in their new album “Honeymoon.” The blend of band members Lili Trifilio, Matt Henkels, Anthony Vaccaro and Jon Alvarado creates a musical work worthy of looking into.

Their album narrates the lives of every teenager, speaking on the heartbreak of teenage love. While the album can be superficial and a far cry from the delicate, deep ballads of top chart heartbreak songs, it does capture the essence of that time in life, those years as a teen that feels infinite. 

The album begins with an unbelievable rhythm that you can’t help but bop your head to and soon transitions to a passionate melody of the guitar. Your interest is automatically piqued by the upbeat and catchy tune with an indie-pop vibe that ties it all together. Waves of nostalgia wash over you as you are immersed in the tune of the song.

The melody — while catchy — begins to sound like it is playing on repeat for every song in the album, making an appearance in every chorus. The loud drums and heavy guitar start to sound overbearing, drowning out the heart of the song which are the lyrics.

Although this may seem distracting, the confusing and loud beat paired with the simple lyrics makes it a tune that runs on and on in your head. It encapsulates the anguish and underlying anger of heartbreak from an immature point of view that every teenager can see as a reflection of themselves.

The alto tone of lead singer Trifilio automatically is the highlight of the song, but once the listener delves deeper, underneath the bordering rock and pop indie melody, the lyrics speak truth to every teenager’s bleeding heart. Beach Bunny essentially builds the universal story of young love, where teenagers can relate to the melodramatic sense of “always ending up in second place” or feeling like a lover is fused to your own “biology.”

While Beach Bunny brings a new theme to your usual playlist with an indie rock vibe, musical ingenuity is generally lacking, and in a sea of pop albums, “Honeymoon” is indistinguishable.

The album within itself contains songs that are simply different versions of each other, and listening almost sounds as if you are looping a track. In their album, “Racetrack” is the only song that provides a change of tone with a softer piano melody. Unlike the other songs, it provides a stripped-down version of raw emotion paired with only vocals and piano. After this quick intermission, the album comes full circle returning to its usual bubbly tone.

Beach Bunny is able to illustrate the process of teenagers shedding their rose-tinted love — essentially concluding that not all fairytales have happy endings. It is an undeniable truth that Beach Bunny presents a great Indie album that speaks to the hearts of every heartbroken teenager. While sappy, it shines on its relatability, allowing every individual to find something — whether a lyric or a rhyme — to carry as a piece of themselves.