Bad Mary on Getting in The Zone With Their New EP
On a warm summer evening, with the setting sun creating glorious streaks of orange and red through the polluted New York sky, I sat down and talked with punk rock brigade, Bad Mary, outside one of their all-time favorite venues: Mr. Beery’s in Bethpage, Long Island.
Bad Mary is well known within the Long Island scene for its lively stage performances and dedication to keeping the sounds of late 70s and early 80s rock and pop alive. They’re seasoned musicians, each with well over a decade of musical experience under their belt, and are no strangers to venues and festivals of all shapes and sizes. And to better get in the zone before playing, they’ve developed their own pre-show rituals.
Lead vocalist, Amand Mac, gets in the right headspace by stretching and shaking out any bad energy. Also, a little caffeine doesn’t hurt. But for her, waiting too long before going on can become agonizing after a while.
Guitarist (and Amanda’s professor at Hofstra University), David Henderson, also tends to get a little nervous before playing, especially at bigger gigs. Both he and Amanda confess that they’ve blanked on parts of their songs, but those moments can also lead to fun for both the band and the audience
“What’s kind of fun about those kinds of performances is that it’s one of a kind. And it's funny and that’s part of our energy too; we just go with it, and I will laugh, and you will laugh, and everyone’s like ‘well, that happened,’” says Amanda.
“It's nice when the fans point out that you switched the second or third verses or something, like oh, great! You’re listening!” David adds.
Bassist and vocalist (and Amanda’s husband), Mike Staub, isn’t really phased by stage fright whatsoever. “I literally don’t give a shit,” he says candidly. Of course, that doesn’t mean not caring about his performance, far from it. His reasoning is that no one else is as prepared to play his part in that moment, so why be nervous? It’s all about having a good time anyway. “It’s weird. We’re a band that takes our performances seriously, but we don’t take ourselves seriously” he says.
What pumps Mike up before a show is usually one of the other band members. “For a long time, the band has made a joke that the angrier I am before a show, the better we play. So, ultimately, someone usually goes out of their way to upset me just enough to get to that point,” he says.
Drummer (and Amanda’s father), Bill Mac, has a simple approach to preparing for his performances. “Before shows, I spend my time conserving my energy,” he says with a good-humored laugh. “Usually, I just hang out, sit in the corner, try to have pasta, carb up. I’m like a runner, you know.”
It can be difficult dealing with pre-show jitters, even for the most experienced performers. But even when that’s the case, a little nervousness can also add a little extra oomph to a performance.
Bad Mary certainly has that oomph in spades. Their determination has carried them through a more than decade-long music career and multiple tours, including one in Japan. When I asked them about where they’d want to go next if they had a blank check, they unanimously agreed that Japan would once again be their first choice.
Aside from there, they’ve also considered both the UK and Australia, as fans from both countries have asked them to visit. Bill suggested that they play the Sydney Opera House, which I imagine can’t be that hard to book.
In addition to playing both abroad and domestically with groups like The Dollyrots, Bad Mary has also been working on a few different records. Their recently released EP, “Rock and Roll Classics: Vol. 7,” features iconic hits from the likes of Cream, Misfits, and Queen. This eclectic collection consists of tracks that the band has been playing for years. “Those feel like they’re ours. I know we didn’t write them, but we’ve thrown them into our sets for so long that it’s definitely different,” says Amanda.
Since Bad Mary started out as a cover band, they had plenty of songs to choose from. “I think, ultimately, we chose songs that we can put our spin on,” says Mike. He emphasizes that they’re mainly interested in songs that will be fun to play live. A lot of the covers on their new EP were recorded a while ago, but the band needed some more time to decide on the last few songs. They’re still very confident that some of their best recordings land on these projects.
“We all definitely had a hand in crafting it. There were songs that we all brought to the table and then collectively decided on, so we’re pretty well-represented as a unit, but also individually,” says Amanda.
Beyond their covers EP, the group has also been putting out original material, such as their recent single, “The Floor is Lava.” On top of the track, which is a callback to chaotic childhood antics, David decided to make an accompanying music video.
“I kinda had this idea, but I had no idea if I could pull it off. We should literally be playing the floor is lava, but how would that work?”
As it turns out, it would be through a whole lot of effort.
“I rented a theatre at Hofstra and we put up all the green screens. Basically, the entire floor and walls were green screens. I got a bunch of my students —they didn’t volunteer, we actually paid them— and they helped do the lighting and everything else. And I hired a student from the film department to film it,” explains David.
The first shoot didn’t work, so they had to do it all over again to get it how they wanted it. David then spent a month processing the video in After Effects. Having already worked on many projects, including the award-winning “The Return of Space Girl” short film based on the album of the same name, David is no amateur. But the music video still proved to be challenging due to the level of visual effects needed.
“It was probably more than I should’ve bit off,” he confesses. “But I think it came out really well.”
The video is about as chaotic as you might expect, with everyone jumping around and throwing furniture to and fro. “I can verify, as the only person not holding an instrument, that we were actually playing the floor is lava,” says Amanda. “There was a lot of flailing and missing things and flying cushions—”
“I fell off the table at one point,” David admits.
“—David fell off the table at one point,” Amanda confirms. “And I’m pretty sure I fell into the couch.”
The total shoot was at least 12 hours over two days. And that’s not including building the set and processing the special effects. But it was all worth it to them in the end.
“I like the videos. It’s mostly a matter of thinking up an idea that I then figure out how to do. Every one of the videos is my favorite video,” says David with a smile.
“The Floor is Lava” will be part of the next Bad Mary EP, “Trash and Glamour,” which will be released sometime during the Fall of 2022. Mike is still hesitant about the name and theme, but Amanda is all in on the idea. “I like trash!” She says with pure glee. “I’ve worn trash bags on stage. David has made trash couture. I love the word garbage, I love the word trash, that’s me. Oscar is amazing, what a grouch.”
Speaking about their upcoming project, Mike says “We just wanted to go back to a simpler time for us in terms of what the grand scale of the thing was.” For Bad Mary, that means sticking to what they know and love: playing their hearts out and sharing a good time with their listeners.
And to all the past, present, and future Bad Mary fans out there, Amanda speaks for the band in saying this:
“Feel free to message us! We like talking with you on our socials. It's just us, we don't have someone managing them. So, if you want to stop by and say hello, do it! We love it, we love talking to you. And honestly, thank you so much for listening. Thank you so much for your continued support. Thank you for reaching out. Thank you for letting us know that you’re there. We appreciate it. We appreciate you.”
You can follow the band on social media platforms at @badmaryband. And feel free to say hang out with them on twitch at twitch.tv/badmaryband, where you can find them jamming out every Tuesday.