by Emily Meenan
10,000 Maniacs are a nearly perfect picture of success. “I think it was a combination of persistence, good song writing, college radio, MTV, a good agent and manager and a record company willing to tough it out with a young band,” says Stephen Gustafson, the band’s bassist. Starting the same year that MTV and David Letterman began helped the band to be in the right place, with the right talent, at the right time.
They gained time of fans and popularity throughout the 80s and 90s. With the death of their good friend Rob Buck in 2000, they decided it was time for a break. “It certainly felt like the end of what we were doing. Mary moved to California, some of us were raising families and had obligations to them. It was a sad and confusing time and it took a while to muster up the desire to continue.”
That desire finally came to them in 2004, when they started playing a few shows per year. This effort continued as more of a part time commitment until 2009 when 10,000 Maniacs got a new manager who helped them find the motivation not only to play more, but to start writing some new material. “We also decided that writing and recording new material would be a good thing and it was in many ways.”
With new times and new music comes new ways to get your music out to the public, and for 10,000 Maniacs that new way was PledgeMusic.com. “We didn’t have a record contract but wanted to release a new album. Our old manager introduced us to the people at pledgemusic.com and they thought we’d be a good match and we were. We have to remind people that we’re still working and playing. Pledgemusic helped us engage our fans in what we were doing and build our audience back up.”
This campaign isn’t the only one for the band, Gustafson tells. “We plan on launching another pledge campaign in the next year.”
When they began, 10,000 Maniacs were one of the first “college bands.” Coming back nearly twenty years later, there was some concern and speculations made by the public concerning how they would be received this time around. On the band’s end, things were a-okay, Gustafson claims.
“The band members still enjoy each others company. We still like each other and it’s still fun to play our music. There are some obvious differences that come with being older, but one thing that hasn’t changed is the joy of meeting fans.”
And on the other end of things? Gustafson confirms that not only are there still tons of original fans, but lots of new ones to be made. “Our fans are very kind. Performing live has instant gratification and that rush hasn’t changed. There’s nothing like a standing ovation for a good days work.”
This one current project that they’ve got going on isn’t their “last hoorah.” “We’ve got plans for a couple of recording projects and more touring.” Gustafson says. “We’ll keep at it while it’s still fun.”
http://youtu.be/z55CbLIStic
