MANTUS SET TO RELEASE 40TH ANNIVERSARY ALBUM (May 2017) From Brooklyn basements and block parties to three Top Ten Dance hits on the Billboard charts

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MANTUS SET TO RELEASE 40TH ANNIVERSARY ALBUM

(May 2017) From Brooklyn basements and block parties to three Top Ten Dance hits on the Billboard charts, a group once pinned as New York's favorite disco era band are commemorating an an- niversary; reunited, in the studio and back to their pop-rock roots, Mantus begins recording a new full-length album.

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In 1976, singer Frank "Deac" DeCrescenzo, bassist John Kaz, drummer Billy Amendola, and guitarist Jimmy Maer hit the NYC scene as young twenty-somethings, effortlessly mimicking what would eventually become classic rock. As their songwriting progressed, the band's R&B and Motown injected sound turned heads, subsequently landing them a record deal under the guidance of SMI Records. In 1979, the band's single "Dance It Freestyle" and their transformed sound held top spots for consecutive periods of time on WKTU radio in NYC and swiftly across the nation.

Their follow-up album "Midnight Energy" and single "Rock It to The Top" quickly became a favorite for radio stations, clubs, and DJ's worldwide, hitting the top 10 in Billboard and international dance charts. The band immediately found themselves performing at the infamous Studio 54 and touring across Europe and Canada on trend-setting television shows. As the times changed, so did Mantus and while remaining great friends, they each went their separate ways in 1982.

Back together again and under the 825 Records' umbrella of developmental marketing and clout on the national indie music scene, Mantus are not just starting where they left off, but returning to where it all began. Re-introducing a refined, signature blend of melodically-minded pop arrangements with a soulful edge, a nod to decades of influences and harmony that can only be built by experience and lifelong friendship, proves for a new chapter in Mantus' storybook.

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While some fans may feel like Mantus is depriving them of velvet jumpsuit nostalgia, producer, 825 owner, and son (both literally and figuratively) Matty Amendola states, "this is a band in their purest form for the first time in 40 years." Matty's shrewd business approach and prodigious creative input are also backed up by the band's long-term relationship with 825 chief engineer, Butch Jones (Grammy Winner, Madonna, Talking Heads, B52's).

“Matty and his team are tapped into the pulse of today's music industry," says DeCrescenzo. "He's an old soul in a younger man's clothes." Aside from producing, Matty, who has found his own success over the past ten years as an "artist development specialist" and "indie pop expert," has also been lending a hand on songwriting sessions and lead guitar.

Mantus is again adapting to the industry's revised model, periodically streaming their completed work before pre-orders are available on MantusOnline.com.

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