Exploring “EVERYDAMNDAY” with Nashville-Based Alternative Rock Band, Manic.
Nashville’s Manic. has been flooring towards their goals with full and dynamic force. Following up a litany of new music thus far in 2023, Manic.’s latest single release of “EVERYDAMNDAY” came with the exciting announcement of their upcoming debut album, The Butterfly Effect (The Bedhead Cut). We received the exciting opportunity to catch up with Manic. and chat about their latest releases, the truth in their songwriting process, and the butterfly effects that create the perfect musical storm that is Manic.
[UNPUBLISHED:] So excited to get to speak with you today! For any readers who may be new to your music, can you give a quick introduction of the band and how you all became Manic.?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] Excited to talk to you too! My name is Nicholas and I sing and make weird noises. Matthew (Reverend Vero) Paul Robert plays keys and synth, and guitar sometimes. Jacob Saint Patrick plays bass guitar.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] I’m really good at air-saxophone, also.
[MATTHEW VERO:] We all met separately but the first time we all were in the same room together was on set for the “Nothing With You” music video. It’s kind of funny to think that at the time, neither Jake nor I were in the band yet, we were just hanging out. But then we did a lot of that, and I think everyone realized in their own time, “this is the band.” That’s the short version of the story.
[UNPUBLISHED:] I want to give you a major congratulations on today’s release of your latest single “EVERYDAMNDAY.” This song has such an explosive buildup that I cannot get enough of as you tip the metaphorical hat towards the experiences of people often forgotten. How are you feeling now that the song is officially out?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] Pumped and grateful. This is one of the last ones we wrote for the record. I’m usually more excited about whatever I’ve written more recently. It feels like more of an accomplishment and closer to the heart and an example of how the band has grown since we started writing and recording.
[MATTHEW VERO:] I’m excited. Manic. is such a truly collaborative project and everyone has their darlings when it comes to the songs, it’s easy to feel like a passenger sometimes to the creative process. But “EVERYDAMNDAY” stylistically is a song that is right in my wheelhouse and it put me and Nicholas in the driver’s seat from the start, and became one of my favorite songs we’ve done. Nicholas nailed the hook, and a lot of the audible parts and sonic elements in the final version were tracks that I recorded in my home studio and sent over to Nick or Andrew Gomez. I’m happy that something I personally am super proud of is out in the world.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] A bit melancholy. Songs are a way for us to philosophically elaborate on stories that we need to shine a light on. It hits close to home, and in the very real world outside of the philosopher’s desk, there is so much happening at such a pace that it’s hard to keep up with, or even feel like we can make a change and unforget.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Another recent single “Blood In My Mouth” holds a gut punch of strong lyricism and energetic guitar lines as you discuss the various situations in the world that can prompt your mouth to fill with blood. What prompted the creation of “Blood In My Mouth” for you all?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] Jake and our friend/producer, Matt Bolton, actually wrote the majority of the instrumental and arrangement for that one. When it got to me, I asked Jake what the track felt like to him. He said it felt like trying to get by through the end of the world with everyone pointing the finger at you. That resonated with me. He also wrote the line “I got that bad breath.” Like…yeah my breath smells bad, but also, fuck you. Like, my anxiety has me about to start breaking down and we’re all divided enough, and you have the nerve to say I’m the problem. I was partially responding to someone in my life that said homosexuality was a sin. It’s also a reference to the taste of ash or blood you get in your mouth when you’re talking shit.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] I was doing a bass line a day for one month. I was at the end of the month and getting frustrated that I wasn’t cracking into any new territory. Twenty minutes in and I was just about to get up and walk away. I forced myself deeper into my chair and immediately started playing the bedrock of the verse. It was new, and fresh. Like The Naked And Famous and Death Cab For Cutie had a love child with Paramore. It felt raw, and was the closest I came to capturing the kind of frustration I was feeling during the COVID pandemic. From there I brought it into the basement where Matt (Bolton) was working and within a few hours I knew we had a hit. I knew it needed the energy of an Ariana Grande song with the aggression of Kendrick on DAMN. Nick and I embarked on an odyssey of exploration and arguments. In the end the lyrics and melody from Nick have blown me away, and I’m glad we grinded through. The short length of the track and the rejection of ABAB form is a statement on the state of instant gratification and the copy-paste music we see too often in the industry.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Do you have a typical songwriting process, or does it change with each new track?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] It changes pretty much song to song. Most of the time I come in with a demo and a song idea and we build it up from there. There’s a few songs on the record Jacob started. Two that Matt Vero started, I think. Some we all wrote in the same room. By the time we finished the record, I think we found that our favorite way to go about it is just to plug in and be a band. Crazy that it took us a year and a half to sus that out.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] Each song starts with a truth and goes from there. As the song develops each of the members will periodically step in with non-negotiables to keep us from straying too far from that truth.
[MATTHEW VERO:] We’ve historically done a lot of bouncing between different approaches, especially for this record where we’re dealing with materials that span from Manic. being a solo project, through materials written with different collaborators across the country, different early lineups, tracks produced to greater or lesser degrees by individual members of the band, plus a handful of new songs that the three of us wrote together. But now we’re honing in on what works well with the three of us and writing the best music we’ve ever had, faster than we’ve ever done.
[UNPUBLISHED:] I saw that you’ve recently had some incredibly exciting shows in Nashville and Atlanta! What have those live show experiences been like with your newest songs?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] It’s been so much fun. We’ve been in the studio for so long. People have been so kind and receptive. It’s been received better than we ever anticipated. We’ve already started sneaking in songs from album two into some of the sets. And it’s super validating to know we’re headed in the right direction and it feels right to play.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] We’re pushing ourselves so hard as players in the new cuts that often I’m not sure if new audiences always know what to do. From the stage I’ve caught some mouths hanging open. It’s really gratifying, and the guys in the band are such incredible performers that they deserve that recognition. We’re always getting compliments on “that one song [that’s not on Spotify].”
[UNPUBLISHED:] Can we expect more live shows in the future?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] Definitely. We’d like to tour. We’re starting to figure out what that’s going to look like this week.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] Be the change you want to see in the world, contact your local Manic. member and offer them a tour… looking at you, Fall Out Boy.
[MATTHEW VERO:] I’ve been told that if we play more shows and we sell some tickets we might be able to afford to record the new songs we’ve been writing.
[UNPUBLISHED:] This year has sparked a litany of releases for you, ranging from January’s “The Dropout Anthem” to Valentine’s Day’s double release of “Into Oblivion” and “twofourteen,” all of which explore a wide range of sound and storyline and are leading up to your soon-to-be-released concept album The Butterfly Effect (The Bedhead Cut). Can you give us any hints on what to expect from the full album?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] Expect nothing, and you won’t be disappointed. But seriously, I’m pretty stoked that Jake sings a song on the record. & it’s a pretty dynamic collection of songs.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] That is something that happens and I am terrified.
[MATTHEW VERO:] There’s definitely a concept to it that we’re all looking forward to build up for our audience. But the album itself is basically a mixtape of the last three years. It stabs in a dozen different directions and you can hear the band grow through different producers, phases, and creative approaches. If you’re paying attention, somewhere in all that you’ll hear the future.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What are you all feeling as you gear up to officially release your debut album?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] Anxious. Bloated. Sleepy. Existential. Blue. Manic.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] Inspired every day by the tenacity and relentlessness of our team.
[MATTHEW VERO:] Broke.
[UNPUBLISHED:] As you’ve grown and changed throughout your music career as a band thus far, is there any advice you wish you had been given when you were first starting out?
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] If you love it, truly, write a metric shit ton of songs honestly. The best ones will stand out to you and those around you. Don’t lean on anyone to find your voice and sound for you and if you get stuck, pick up the instrument you feel the most comfortable with, and just have fun.
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] 99% of the greatest artists go into obscurity. Give yourself to being the 99%.
[MATTHEW VERO:] The cruel irony is that pretty much the only advice I got when I was starting out was, “don’t,” but now that I’m here it’s the only suggestion I feel qualified to give to anyone who wants to “become an artist,” or whatever it is people want to become when they feel too important for their surroundings. Music (or any of the arts) will take everything from you: your ego, your youth, every penny you own, and leave you staring into your empty palms if you’re doing it right. Like Jake said, give yourself to being the 99%. If you find that you can’t live with that, and that you don’t love the process itself but in fact what you perceived to be the results or effects of the process, no one worth a damn will judge you for getting out on your own terms. It shows discernment.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Is there anything else you want the reader to know?
[JACOB SAINT PATRICK:] Dear Constant Reader,
[NICHOLAS BANOS:] It isn’t over yet... and one step to the left can cause a butterfly effect. You’re so loved. Don’t let it take you.
[MATTHEW VERO:] You’re not alone. Your story deserves to be shared and is still being written. Love the questions themselves, not the answers anyone can give you. That’s all I got.
