SASAMI is back with “Honeycrash,” a stadium-sized ballad that swells with cinematic grandeur brought to life via its video directed by Andrew Thomas Huang (Björk, FKA Twigs).

“I wanted to write a song with all the drama of a 19th century classical opera but with the patience and understanding of someone in therapy in 2024,” SASAMI explains. “Finding a love so great you’re willing to persist through the elements, even toward certain death to bear its ravishment. It’s about wanting to fight for the pinnacle of passion and desire but knowing that you can’t change or rush someone else’s feelings or where they’re at. But with a guitar as my sword and my steed. I have been so fortunate to find a collaborator in Andrew, and together we made a sexy little drama of our own. The ‘Honeycrash’ video is a peek into the new world that I have been building and teasing out on stage. I am really thrilled to unleash this first of many new songs in an era of melodrama, romance, and hooks of course.”

“Honeycrash” is a panorama of longing: SASAMI’s widest-screen rendering of the processes of love in all its devastation and expansiveness. This is SASAMI as an auteur of heartache, mixing the epic sweep of a Wagner opera with sci-fi action to say, “This is how I feel, I’m going to let you figure it out. But don’t give up on us.”

Andrew Thomas Huang on “Honeycrash”:
“When I first heard ‘Honeycrash’ I was moved by the thunderous romanticism and cinematic scope of SASAMI’s new sonic direction. After long conversations about the pop focus of her new album, I wanted to create a video for her that felt big, sweeping and sexy while showcasing her performance as the highlight of the piece. I wanted to create a video that evoked themes and images such as runaway fugitives, rogue sisterhood, distressed denim, rugged natural elements, primal rage, Thelma and Louise, tsunamis, tornadoes, blazing sunsets, sci-fi apocalyptic visions of the American West, and passionate ‘i would die for you’ level romance. Achieving this vision on a budget was ambitious but made possible by filming on a volume LED stage and relying on the use of epic stock footage to set the scene for the backdrop of Sasami’s new universe. I am honored to collaborate with SASAMI again on this new journey and am smitten by the world she is heralding with her new sound and vision.”

Praise For 2022’s Squeeze:
“Feels both darkly menacing and openly heartfelt. SASAMI assumes the roles of tormentor and tormented, contending with a world that can be emotionally overwhelming in so many ways.” -The New York Times

“A collection of tracks that sound like she’s digging her nails into the walls of a black hole in an attempt to escape, her mood alternating between feverish determination and clear-eyed hope.” -Pitchfork

“For a song just over two-and-a-half minutes, ‘Skin a Rat’ lands a whole bunch of different blows, each harder and more unexpected than the last. And, like all good rock & roll bruisings, the moment it’s over, you’re ready to spin it back for more.” -Rolling Stone

“Sasami Ashworth is a star in the making… Her self-titled debut solo album from 2019 gained the attention of critics and new fans, but Squeeze might be the one to catapult her to mainstream spaces.” -The AV Club

“A taunting, pummeling blast of noxious noise. It’s a fearsome re-introduction to SASAMI, one that’s less focused on pleasing and more interested in provocation.” -Stereogum