Chris Ingalls: A collaboration between these three terrific singers (Neko, k.d., Laura) is sure to please a respectable swath of music fans. Everyone wins. The song is extremely well-crafted, sounding like some classic from the minds of Jimmy Webb or Bacharach/David. All three are in fine voice, and Lang in particular sounds as good as ever. [9/10]
Emmanuel Elone: If you’re not careful, “Honey and Smoke” will breeze by you before you even realize that you’re listening to it. Everything just falls in place, from the delicately gorgeous female vocals to the soft percussion and light guitar strumming, and nothing seems out of place or superfluous. Since it isn’t that abrasive or even attention-grabbing, “Honey and Smoke” can feel a bit understated musically, but it makes up for its calm demeanor with auditory bliss. case/lang/veirs might not have made the best song ever, but they damn sure made a beautiful one. [7/10]
Pryor Stroud: Taken from the upcoming debut album by the supergroup trio of Neko Case, k.d. lang, and Laura Veirs, “Honey and Smoke” is a charming yet ephemeral pop-country confection that sounds like the sonic embodiment of its title phrase: the saccharine, nearly gelatinous vocal is “Honey” given melodic form, and the billowing atmospheric instrumentation sounds like “Smoke” rising up around the lovestruck lyric. Its breezy and beautiful in a wholly innocuous way, but perhaps best used as background music for a lazy Sunday afternoon. Which is to say, this is music for a certain mood, when being lulled takes priority over being moved. [5/10]
Chad Miller: Gorgeously bittersweet song about desire. The vocals are really good here, highlighting the pain of watching a loved one with someone else. The background vocals and synth (I think) parts give the song a great color too. To top it all off, the production here is simple, but it’s really effective. [8/10]
Neko Case, k.d. lang, and Laura Veirs will release case/lang/veirs on June 17th via Anti- Records.
SCORE: 7.25