This time around we were lucky enough to be able to interview Manic Days: In the past two years that, Manic Days have been shining bright in their current constellation they have already made a name for themselves and with so much more in their history, they were excited to tell us all about their beginnings, development, and achievements as a Band.
All four band members were introduced to music at a very young age. The two guitarists, Ju and Fritz, met each other about ten years ago and began bonding over this shared passion. Ju was fascinated by music since he was 7 and started listening to a selection of songs on his old Nokia phone. From that moment on he was captivated by the fact that music could sound extremely weird but extraordinary at the same time. Fritz’s music journey started with downloads of songs off the internet at age 10. From the beginning, Fritz was a very musically inclined kid. After a friend introduced him to punk, he was extremely impressed. From that point on he was a big fan of this kind of music, but also bands like The Offspring. For Marcel, the drummer, it was the introduction to Linkin Park at age 7 that awakened his interest in rock music. After watching live performances of multiple bands on TV, he wanted to start playing drums started doing this alongside guitar and voice lessons. Once he came back from a semester abroad in Canada, he felt drawn to playing in a band, so he searched the Website “Bandsuche” for one and joined Manic Days after Fritz got in touch with him. For singer bassist Nico it was his parents’ influence that introduced him to artists like The Clash or Falco throughout his childhood. Even though he never felt the need to make music himself, his father still tried to convince him and giving him guitar lessons at the age of 11. He was able to learn more instruments over the years, like piano, and even joined his school choir. After he started an apprenticeship, he had to put music aside. However, when Ju, whom he first met at a music event, asked him to join the band as a singer, he returned to music, as both the band’s singer and bassist.
After Nico completed the quartet, they started recording their first EP which was released in 2022. All these songs have had already been written by Ju, Fritz, and Marcel, so Nico had to familiarise himself with them. In 2023 they have released quite a few singles like “Wicked Game” and “Ghost Town.”
When it comes to writing their songs, they don’t have a fixed process. Most of the time Nico brings along some demos with an idea and then the rest of the band add the vocals and structure to it. They complement each other very well as each of them has knowledge about more than just their own instrument, so giving constructive feedback is easier. For their single “Wicked Game” each band member wrote their part individually – Ju and Fritz focused on the guitars, Nico took care of the lyrics and Marcel added the drums – and in the end they just combined everything. This especially shows off how well coordinated Manic Days is.
All that great teamwork really paid off many times already and helped them to score second place at the “Planet Festival Tour Band Contest.” Playing the final show in front of 3000 people at Gasometer was a mind-blowing experience for them. Besides the amazing feeling of playing in front of so many people, they were also able to connect with the other contestants which developed into friendships that last to this day. But apart from all the fun and new experiences, it was also an immensely stressful time that a lot of hard work went into. However they fought their way through and in the end, they were rewarded with the silver medal.
Obviously, their journey does not end there. Manic Days have already planned the upcoming two years thoroughly so fans can be very thrilled for six brand new singles which will be launched throughout the year. The first one is going be released on the 15th of March and is called “Mirrors,” so make sure to give it a listen once it’s out. They are also already extremely excited about the release of their second EP in 2025.
Make sure to check them out now and if you want to see them live you will have the chance on the 16th of March where they will certainly play an amazing show at the B72 alongside Zascha and Cupiditas, two more phenomenal artists of the band scene in Vienna.
In conclusion we wanna say that we ourselves really love Manic Days’ music and enjoy their songs on a daily basis and we absolutely can’t wait to hear their new songs, see them live and whatever may still come. Guys, you are doing a mind-blowing job!
written by Vanessa
copy edited by Heather Awen