In a way that beautifully deviates from their September debut with the overall upbeat – pop/synth heavy “Gone” – Nashville based Manic. has followed the release with their powerful stripped down second track, “Through.”
While the striking sincerity and honesty that radiated through the lyrics of their debut still shines bright – “Through” showcases those raw emotions in a much more vulnerable light. 
From the creative mind of writer, producer, vocalist and instrumentalist Nicholas Banos, “Through” highlights the captivating concept of the genre-less complexity that is Manic. Despite initial fears of releasing two drastically different singles back-to-back, it’s that dynamic diversity that exhilarated Nicholas the most through the development of this project.
“The entire premise of the project is – I’m trying to make it as diverse, and ambiguous, and blend as many genres as possible…” Nicholas told heirwaves on the phone while driving through Florida backroads.
“I never sat down and planned what the sound was going to be,” he explains, noting that the majority of the influence comes from his personal feelings in that moment or what he is listening to at any given time.
“No matter what genre I go into, I have my voice, and my own approach with the lyrics. That’s what pulls it all together,” he shares, “When I was writing ‘Through’ I was listening to so much Bob Dylan, and classic stuff, and acoustic… I knew I didn’t want to stick to one genre.”
Separating himself from what he can only describe as the monotonous process of writing repeatedly in a studio for days at a time, Nicholas explains that starring at his laptop searching for unique sounds began to exhaust him to a point where the creative element wasn’t feeling natural anymore. “I just wanted to do something that was more raw and more sincere,” he says, “So I closed my laptop and picked up my guitar.”
After writing countless other songs for this project, he found that “Through” stood out in a way that truly represented his personal identity… despite its contrast to the pop-forward debut single “Gone” – it meant something deeper… something more.
When he began writing for this project prior to moving to Nashville, Nicholas shares that there was an ever-present fear of sharing lyrics that were too personal – a fear that cause him to hold back in his writing.
“I’ve found the more transparent that I’ve been, the better it’s been received,” he says – noting the transparency in every element of the track, including the line in the chorus ‘Do something with your hair it looks terrible,’ – something that his mother has repeatedly mentioned.
He shares that the process of writing this song represented his breaking out of his own habits and routines – with a tone of speaking to a younger version of himself… a version of himself that had been inundated with writing pop songs while partying and not necessarily making the best decisions – but it was his ultimate goal to be honest and transparent in sharing those emotions and reflections.
Those reflections for Nicholas carried all the way down through the album artwork for the project as well – with the satirical use of himself as a faceless figure as opposed to the headshot on the cover of most singer/songwriter releases. Noting his use green, blue, and yellow/gold to represent earth, water, and sunlight, “three very simple things that I think we/I take for granted,” he shares – adding that the December 2019 release is also symbolic of carrying the themes of the song through closing out the decade.
“I’ll always be sincere… I guess we’ll see whether or not I lose myself in obscurity along the way,” he concludes with a laugh.
“Through” is available for streaming and download on all platforms now.
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