With lyrics by vocalist Marc LaBelle, Dirty Honey’s new song, “Won’t Take Me Alive,” draws a non-negotiable line in the sand of integrity and self-determination on one side, and potentially dire consequences on the other.
Lyrically, inspiration was taken from the bravery and defiance found today in the people of Ukraine, as well as from a conversation LaBelle had with a fellow traveler he met while visiting the Berlin Wall. The gentleman had grown up in Cold War Germany, so he resonated with those forced to live under autocratic rule. Musically, the song is a literal, take-no-prisoners-balls-out-rocker. The music video for “Won’t Take Me Alive,” released today, follows suit.
Written and directed by George Gallardo Kattah,* the video centers on Ava, a private school student who is told by Helga, the school’s principal, that she has to conform to the rules, wear the school uniform, no tongue piercing, no listening to rock music. But Ava is defiant; she won’t submit, and instead, she continues to break down the walls of conformity that are important to establishing who she is and will be for the rest of her life. She finds solace in her attic bedroom, where she can listen to and play the music that releases her frustrations. She keeps track on a chalkboard of every day that she’s in school, another day in prison. And she is desperately looking for an exit, any exit, which she finds as the story unfolds. This is “Won’t Take Me Alive.”
“This song made me feel like a teenager, and we had lots of fun channeling our frustrations from back in the day by doing this video,” said Gallardo. “Bringing Ava and Helga to life was quite a process and a highlight of this year so far.”
Dirty Honey’s 2023 North American “Can’t Find The Brakes” headline tour launches on October 18, and the band’s upcoming album, Can’t Find The Brakes, is set for a November 3 release. For all tour dates and more Dirty Honey information, go HERE.
Bay Area fans can see Dirty Honey perform at The Regency Ballroom in San Francisco, CA on October 18th.