Savage Honey announce debut album ‘Darling’
A raw, heartfelt journey through love, loss, and the chaos of growing up
Emerging from the coastal town of Torquay, Victoria, indie-rock outfit Savage Honey are set to release their highly anticipated debut album Darling on 8 June, 2026. Blending the spirit of classic rock with modern indie sensibilities, the record captures the band’s formative year in a deeply personal and sonically rich collection of songs.
Drawing influence from the swagger of 70s rock and roll, the storytelling of Irish ballads, and the soul of blues and classic pop, Savage Honey; which is: Dominic Paver (songwriter, rhythm guitar, backup/ lead vocals), Jacob Hunniford (lead vocals, songwriter, bass guitar), Joshua Young (drums) and Jay Rose-ham (keyboard); channel the sounds of artists like Oasis, Kings of Leon, Led Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac, Powderfinger and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Fans of The Terrys, Spacey Jane and Pacific Avenue will feel right at home in their nostalgic yet fresh sound.
At its core, Darling is a coming-of-age record, equal parts reflective and celebratory.
“Darling is the first album Savage Honey is releasing. It's a series of songs written during the first year as a band with the founding members and due to that fact is a reflection of what our lives were like at the time. There are Songs written about love between Dom and Sav as they were together at the time, through to songs that touch on family members struggles with cancer. There are ballads about heart break and bangers that get the crowd dancing. Its a comment on the wild ups and downs in life and the album takes you on a journey that is unique to our sound.
We recorded the album between two beautiful locations. At first we rented a gorgeous loft in the Otway National Park where we spent a week with our producer recording the bed tracks for each song. We would wake up in the morning and go swimming at the nearest waterfall before locking in and playing music every day. In the evenings we would eat dinner together and enjoy some beers and card games by the fire. We also would travel from our homes in Jan Juc up to Sing Sing studios in Northcote to finish the process of recording with Aaron. We felt inspired by our personal lives, relationships, other musicians, nature and the joy of music itself.”
The album was produced and engineered by Aaron Dobos, with musicians playing on album: Savannah Higgs (drums), Alex Mathieson (keys), and Sunny Thapa (lead guitar).
Savage Honey have steadily built a reputation as a compelling live act, earning slots on festival lineups including Party In The Paddock, Here Comes The Sun, Feastival, Flock to the Fields and Volleyfest, while also touring their previous single releases nationally. The band have shared stages with Pacific Avenue and The Terrys, including a collaboration with Finchy, and have continued to grow their audience through consistent radio support and a string of independently released tracks across streaming platforms. Their headline show at the Torquay Hotel further cemented their place as one of the region’s rising indie-rock acts.
With Darling, Savage Honey step confidently into their next chapter, delivering a debut that feels both timeless and distinctly their own. Equal parts raw and refined, the album captures a band on the rise and signals an exciting future for one of Australia’s most promising indie-rock acts.
Savage Honey’s debut album Darling is out now