Mitchell Manburg

Mitchell Manburg is a guitarist and songwriter based in Oakland, CA. After having spent the last 8 years between Los Angeles and the Bay Area fronting bands, he has landed back in Oakland during quarantine, reflecting, writing, and refining his sound as a solo artist. Alas, his debut solo EP, "Laplace Resonance" is ready for release on all platforms in the summer of 2021. Inspired by artists such as Steve Gunn, Mary Lattimore, Guy Blakeslee, and William Tyler, his soothing guitar driven music reflects a current common sentiment of seeking calmness within discord.

Amidst the height of the pandemic Mitchell Manburg found himself subletting in an apartment in Silver Lake. He had recently evacuated an unsafe living situation where he was living next door to his recent ex-girlfriend, rebounding from a band break up, and laid off from a day job, a blessing in disguise. It was almost comical how much his life had fallen apart so quickly.

With the lack of daily structure he recommitted himself to daily practice and writing. He began each morning with coffee, scales, and a free write. And though he would try to write songs about topical issues like quarantine or politics or social justice or his mess of a personal life, each time it felt forced. There was too much to say and he felt less like an artist and more like another talking head.

As it turned out what he had needed in that moment was to just keep making music, period. During his free writes in the weirdness of quarantine he found himself pondering a celestial term called 'laplace resonance'. It’s an astronomical occurrence in which the orbital patterns of Jupiter’s moons synch up in a 1:2:4 ratio. Manburg had learned about it in college and always thought it would be cool to incorporate that into a song somehow. And years later, in spite of everything else on his mind, he was surprised to find it show up in his writing. While it seemed so meaningless, the creative spark was there. In that moment it meant nothing and everything at all. “Laplace Resonance” was the foothold that he needed just to keep writing. Playing ambient music and blues was a soothing experience and sure enough, the meaningful lyrics soon followed.

When he began working on these songs it was as though everything in the world seemed to be moving at the speed of light. And so much has changed even since. In writing these songs Manburg found a source of meditation, escapism, ventilation, and reflection. A search for calmness within the rapidly changing chaos. A space odyssey for an active mind, who’s body is rooted in a very raw earth. And that is the very experience he hopes for his listeners.

Mitchell Manburg's debut solo EP, “Laplace Resonance”, will be streaming on all platforms early this summer.