Toronto pop/rock brother-sister duo The Manic Boys And Girls Club are Bela and Fernando Ferreira. Raised strict Catholic children of immigrant parents, sent away to live in rural Portugal with their grandmother (who had previously been a Catholic nun), The Manic Boys And Girls Club is more than a band. It is an escape from the submissive existence that was the siblings’ reality; an escape from the disposable music packaged for the masses, and an escape for any misfit looking to join the club. The Manic Boys And Girls Club return to Kingston for a live performance at The Mansion on April 29, 2023. Kingston Live had a chance for a quick question-and-answer session with Fernando Ferreira ahead of their show.
You are siblings with a long history of creative collaboration. Is it difficult or easy for the two of you to let others—like producers or other musicians—participate in your creative process? First off, we are both pretty stubborn. We are super possessive of what we do, so it's really hard for us to collaborate with anyone besides each other. When we have something we are working on, even in its early stages, it's like we know exactly how we want it to sound, what we want to say, how we envision it live... There are times when just the two of us writing together turns into a yelling match, so I think if we ever worked with outside writers it would probably just complicate things even more. We are lucky to have had a few producers and musicians put up with us in the studio and on stage, but we are also very selective. The Manic Boys And Girls Club is not a “club" per se, but a band. If it were a club, who'd you invite to join? Invitations would always be open to all. Like at our shows, we would have members who hopefully see a little bit of themselves in what we do. You can dress however, relate to whichever dynamic level of our sound you choose, and hopefully enjoy the time we spend together. Considering your strict Catholic upbringing, how challenging was it for the two of you to come together as a band in your younger years? Music has always been pretty present in religion, so picking up an instrument can come across pretty harmless. Having music consume our lives and writing some of the lyrics we do, that was a little more of a thing. The Manic Boys And Girls Club is the most unedited, unmodified version of who we are. That can be uncomfortable at times, but I don't think we know how to be any other type of band.
The Manic Boys And Girls Club is the most unedited, unmodified version of who we are. That can be uncomfortable at times, but I don't think we know how to be any other type of band.
Recently, you've worked with JUNO Award-winning producer, Gavin Brown, who's also worked with some of Canada's most successful acts (including Kingston's The Tragically Hip, Sarah Harmer and The Glorious Sons). Your music has received close to 150,000 streams, and your videos have 25,000 views. Some might say The Manic Boys And Girls Club have "made it." What would you say? It's cool to have some people in the music industry who we respect want to work with us and be fans of our band. Working with Gavin was definitely a highlight on our journey. As for "making it", I would say we never look sideways to know where we stand on this imaginary scale of success, and we rarely look back at what we've done till now. It's also really hard to have a general definition of "making it". Whatever factors someone chooses to base this on, we are very early on the road ahead of us. Your latest single, We'll Be Fine, is a song about "hope in the future," as you've described. Why is that an important message for you to get out right now? We all have our ups and downs. It's so easy to focus on the negatives, having that shape who we are. We'll Be Fine is really just about getting past all of that, living in the present, making peace with yourself and the people around you. This song is important on a personal level dealing with all of these things. But also on a broader level, I really do believe we all have our purpose and direction in life. No matter how lost we feel, whatever past experiences we've lived through—good and bad—it will all make sense. I think we need to be reminded of that.
No matter how lost we feel, whatever past experiences we've lived through—good and bad—it will all make sense. I think we need to be reminded of that.
You'll be performing live in Kingston at The Mansion on April 29. What should our readers expect from The Manic Boys And Girls Club live show? We're pretty sensitive to our surroundings. The city we're in, even if there is anything personal going on in our lives, it comes across on stage. We could never be a cover band or actors where we can just be "on" and go through the motions. So... Kingston being a city we always look forward to playing will make for a great night. Every show we play is like a party. The fact that we love The Mansion, and being our first show back in a while will give reason to party a little harder. You can expect to experience something together and forget about life for a while. We have met so many great people in Kingston who have become friends we'll have forever. Posted: May 3, 2023 Originally Published: Apr 26, 2023