Man Man, a band known for its unique sound and dynamic live performances, has taken a break from touring to work on their newest record.

Long-time Buntology readers are probably aware that the website is a huge supporter of the 5-piece band from Philly, Penn., so when we got to talk to singer/pianist Honus Honus (Ryan Kattner) recently we were very excited.

We met up with Honus after a show earlier this month in Northampton, Mass., where he gave us some info on the upcoming album and what Man Man has been up to.

“We’re in the thick of it right now, that’s why we’re not really playing many shows,” said Honus. “We’re just planning on doing little weekends runs so at every show we can work on new material.”

The new material, which Honus said may involve more “crooning,” will appear on the fourth full-length Man Man album.

While the band may not be touring as rigourously as usual, they still manage to play a hell-of-a lot of shows, and even found time to make a pit-stop at Rothbury Festival in Rothbury, Michigan this summer to play for a crowd of thousands.

“We’ve played festivals in the past and they’re always fun. That [Rothbury] was a weird festival because it was a very specific genre. Like a hippie-fest,” said Honus. “We played at 2:30 p.m. or something. That’s when people are either coming down or waking up.”

Whether in front of a crowd of thousands or a crowd of hundreds, Man Man’s performances are always non-traditional, and very high energy.
“We definitely feed off the audience,” said Honus. “This is our first live show in almost three months. And half of us are sick, so we weren’t sure how it would go off, but it was a lot of fun.”

Despite Man Man’s growing fan base (and growing discography), Honus said they’re still a “van band.”
“Well actually, we don’t own a van, we just rent vans. And today we just rented like, a 15 passenger van. It’s funny, it’s like Tetris fitting all our gear into it,” he said.

Putting touring aside may leave time for the band to work on new material, but it doesn’t pay the bills. While Honus said the group makes enough money on the road to support themselves, when they’re back in Philly recording they’re just regular guys.

“We’re all working secondary jobs again, and that’s kind of a bummer,” said Honus. “We just pick up odd jobs.”

Keep an eye out for the new album and upcoming Man Man shows here!