Rising funk-soul duo The Good Manners prepare for the release of their eclectic debut EP, Godspeed, out 17th July 2020.
Infectiously groovy from the offset, Godspeed combines retro-soul and funk sensibilities with contemporary R&B-infused pop elements, in order to create a sound that is full-bodied and undeniably vibrant. Upcoming single High Roller feels instantly reminiscent of the likes of Vulfpeck and Sly & The Family Stone, as lead singer Marcos Gonzalez’ soulfully reverberant vocal soars effortlessly over the gyrating bass and funk-forward musicality. Talking about the EP, the duo elaborate, “Godspeed represents good fortune for any journey that you’re about to embark on. All of our songs are a representation of the where we currently were in our lives and where we want to go next.”
In this interview spotlight, I chat with The Good Manners about the music, technology, challenges and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
What attracted you to this genre(s) or style(s)?
What attracts us the most is how raw this sound can be, also messy at times, and that’s what makes it groove so much.
How long have you been creating and sharing your music with the public?
our first single came out in February last year! We started making music together maybe a couple of months before that.
Who or what influences your playing and/or writing? Also, what motivates you to keep going?
We have a lot of different influences but I think the most important thing we take from them is the soul that goes into their art. Some of them are Bill Withers, Sly & The Family Stone, Anderson .Paak, Mark Ronson, etc. We are really motivated when we see our music being heard and shared by people around the world, in places we never thought it would reach. We love connecting with people.
Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?
The mixtape we are releasing next month is the first collection of tracks we put out. We wanted to work on our sound while experimenting and going outside of our comfort zone a little bit more. For this particular song we used different sounds, synths, and samples which we hadn’t done before, we wanna keep pushing ourselves.
What was the last song you listened to?
Just heard ‘Rubber Sky’ from LA Priest’s new album and it’s great!
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
We stream all of our music, our dream is to have a listening room with all of our favorite records on vinyl and a massive sound system.
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
We think Spotify is better, they are the best at showing listeners new music they’ll actually like and connecting with the artists. But as long as you listen to the music you like, we got no problem.
Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what are one or two of the biggest challenges you face when trying to attract listeners to your music?
Probably the biggest challenge is creating an original sound that is interesting enough for new listeners and for yourself. Creating crazy amounts of content for social media non-stop can be really challenging but we love coming up with new ideas all the time.
Do you gig, tour or perform? Do you ever live stream? Where can music lovers see you live?
We have a beautiful and talented band that we LOVE to play with, sadly because of the pandemic we don’t know when we’ll be able to get back on stage but when we do we will be sharing it on our social media!
Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more of your music?
We are always on instagram (@goodgoodmanners) and we love talking to people, we share teasers of the new music we’re working on and releasing soon and some other cool stuff. Go check it out!
Any last thoughts? Shout outs? Words of wisdom?
Godspeed.
