It’s no secret that Chicago’s music scene is vibrant and full of character. One of the most exciting voices is that of Danny Biggins, who records and performs under the name Zombie Mañana. Recently, he spoke with me about his new single, his favorite music from 2022, and the way his priorities have realigned since the worst of the pandemic.
Andrew Howie: Tell me a little about this new song of yours.
Danny Biggins: ‘On Sundays We Chase the Sunset’ was written about a year ago; I made a routine out of every Sunday by driving west out of the city towards the sun (chasing the sunset). I wanted to capture a more summertime vibe with this song; I wrote that opening hook and was feeling a dub/hip-hop type beat. I spontaneously played the chorus chord progression a week later when noodling on the acoustic guitar while talking with a friend. The key change from the verse to the chorus is pretty drastic but I was determined to make it work.
The lyrics are about keeping your mind and heart set on the bigger picture of life. The beauty of Earth and the Universe. The importance of ‘zooming out’ from our daily dramas. There’s a little subplot in the breakdown verse about the feeling of missing someone. I wrote these lyrics to help me get through those feelings; I felt it was a healthy thing to write about exercising restraint, to let someone have their space even though you miss seeing their face.
The track was recorded, mixed, and mastered at Information Playback Reel, a studio near downtown Chicago that I’ve been working out of for five years now.
The personnel on this new track are as follows:
DB (me): Vocals, Guitar, Samples
Dustin Borlack: Flute, Percussion, Bell
Cassandra Lynn: Violin, Cello, Backing vocals
Antony Picardi: Bass
Erik Sraga: Drums
Cover Art: Pat Marek
Music Video: Zpacetree
Final Edit: Great Eye Films
Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered at Information Playback Reel (Chicago, IL)
Mixed by DB and Erik Sraga
Mastered by Sraga
AH: Being a single, one would assume this is part of a larger project?
DB: This single will be featured on a new album which is in the process of creation. As it stands now there will be nine or ten tracks. I was stoked and eager with the turnout of this recording and wanted to make sure it was released during the summertime. I would like to finish and churn out the album by the end of the year, but it’s too early to predict when it will be ready. Compared to the last album You Make Sense, I would say this album is going for a more straightforward sound. I’m heavily influenced by old school reggae dub sounds and indie psychedelic pop right now.
AH: If I’m not mistaken you’ve played a couple shows with a few musicians around the Chicago area lately; if so, who were they and were these the first live shows you’ve played in a while? In short, since we last spoke, what has been your live performance situation?
DB: I recently have played with Jackson Gibbons of Alabaster on drums. I played a couple shows in June with Cory Simmons Band opening for the hip-hop duo Little Stranger in Colorado. Antony Picardi, who played bass on ‘Sunset’, was on those Colorado shows as well. We in fact performed ‘Sunset’ at these shows! Traveling and performing music, what a concept. At this point, I have decided to put full focus into my craft with no side projects. Feels good.
AH: Now that I’ve interviewed a few musicians since the height of the pandemic, one thing I’m always curious about is whether or not the circumstances made you realize any priorities, musical or otherwise, that you may not have before 2020. Was this the case with you?
DB: This is a great question. I have definitely done some soul-searching in this time. I realized that ultimately I want amazing recordings to look back on, especially from this time period. I’d love to get active with playing shows and touring again with the release of this new material. I take much enjoyment from solo acoustic shows as well, as those performances force me to be super consistent and carry the show with just my playing and voice. Also, I want to get better at cooking! Mixing music is a lot like a good meal. All the ingredients (layers) distinct yet complimenting each other.
AH: You told me the personnel for this new song, but what’s your live band situation?
DB: Right now the active live group is just me and Cassandra Lynn, who plays violin, backing vox, and keyboards live. Cassie has played with me for six years now! Her parts on this song really are the secret sauce (on all the songs really!). Dustin Borlack (drums on prior albums) is still involved but for this song he played flute and percussion. He recorded his parts in Florida! I’ll probably be recruiting a consistent bassist and drummer soon…
AH: What have you been listening to lately that’s made you say “Holy shit, that’s cool?” and why?
DB: This year a whole bunch of my top influences released new albums: The Smile (Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead), Animal Collective, and Daniel Rossen of Grizzly Bear. I saw Sigur Rós in June and it was truly mind-blowing. Julia Holter’s ‘World’ is a tune I discovered this year that blew me away as well. Anything with vision or good vocals usually grabs me, as well as trippy sounds of course. I discover new amazing indie stuff all the time. I’m going to give a shout out to the wonderful electronic duo R34L, who are actually my roommates, ha! Charlie Otto is another Chicago based musician churning out amazing audio and visual content all the time.
Don’t sleep on Zombie Mañana! You won’t want to miss where they head next.
Check out the video for ‘On Sundays We Chase the Sunset’ (created by Zpacetree)
