Honky Toast

Welcome to the FanSpace dedicated to Honky Toast!
©Proudly Unofficial™
Meat the Honkys
For younger players, Honky Toast is a hard rock band from the late 90’s East Village club scene in New York, consisting of Eric J Toast (Vocals, Rhythm Guitar), Ricard Croissant (Guitars), EZ Bake (Bass Guitar) and Frank B Butter (Drums). To this day, you may hear them named as anything from genius satirists, to cartoon rockers, to “the best band to come out of that city since D-Generation” (metal hammer.co.uk). In truth, they were a creative, enigmatic force, and it is hard to find anything that compares with Honky Toast.
The group formed on the premise that they would get together and play when all the members were in town, and although it may have started out as a laugh, - lead singer Eric J Toast was quoted as saying, “Then I saw all these groups that weren't any better than me filling up clubs. So I said, 'Well, all right, I'll play some rock 'n' roll” - their popularity steadily increased and they soon become a hot live act. Venue after venue was played, filled and had its ass well and truly kicked; Honky Toast were heavily in demand.
The Album
It wasn’t long before the group was pursued by various labels, and they subsequently signed to Epic Records/550 music. Their debut album “Whatcha Gonna Do Honky?” was released in 1999, with the song ‘Shakin' and a Bakin' ’, released as a promo. The fourteen song album takes you on a conceptual journey unlike any other. A listener could make their way through hundreds of records and not find anything close to the diverse musical feast of “Whatcha Gonna Do Honky?”
See the blog “The Songs”.
The Reviews
“Whatcha Gonna Do Honky?” does many things, including exploring what can go wrong in life, done as only the Honkys can. Of course, some missed the fact that the mimicry and irony of the Honky Toast boys was deliberate, and the album received mixed reviews. But it certainly had many protagonists.
(Lorne Berhman, Village Voice): “‘Whatcha Gonna Do Honky?’ by local Lower East Side boys Honky Toast makes a memorable album of this - decorating slithering funk-rock riffs with organ flourishes and busy-but-spot-on percussion. On these slinky workouts, singer/rhythm guitarist Eric J. Toast's charismatic vocal affectations - everything from James Brown shrieks to a heavy-lidded stoner drawl - establish that Honky Toast ain't playing a style, it's playing with style. A claim the band backs up with its rootsy ornamentation on their boogie-ballads 'California' and 'Alcoholic Mama.' "
Another reviewer named Croissant a “juke box hero”, for his protopunk style guitar work.
“Whatcha Gonna Do Honky?” demands a listen - and better still, two or three of them - before making up your mind about the music of this band. It has its heart-aching tunes, its silly moments, its songs of jaded experience, and its glorious satire. This album is one-of-a-kind, and a must to check out for any serious fan of rock.
Honky Toast made rock hard, made it well, and made it more fun than it had been for some time. Perhaps this most telling of reviews sums up the album, and indeed the band, perfectly:
(Skate and Annoy): “A reviewer once wrote "The Ramones don't waste their time, they waste yours." The same kind of people who passed on the Heartbreakers or didn't get the Ramones are likely to be the same ones that won't give Honky Toast a chance.”
Whatcha Gonna Do?
Only one album was released, and the band played their last show. The members moved on to find satisfaction in various other projects, including Pisser, Guns N' Roses and Untouchable. Leaving those of us who saw Honky Toast play with nothing but the memories of a better time, and those of us who didn’t get the chance wondering what could have been.
Honky Toast, we salute you.