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Tom Minor’s The Manic Phase is a sharp and wildly engaging four-track EP that captures the chaos of nightlife and the fragile brilliance of its characters. Inspired by a larger-than-life figure known only as “Thievin’ Stephen,” Minor paints a vivid portrait of a man both magnetic and melancholic—a party hero possibly lost to his own highs and lows.
The title track, “The Manic Phase,” bursts open with pounding guitars and lyrical wit. Minor describes his muse as a “bipolar bear” with a “moral compass meeting magnet”—a man pulled in every direction by impulse and charm. The music rises and falls with this emotional turbulence, switching between grandeur and vulnerability.
“Saturday Eats” Its Young, already known to fans, remains the standout anthem. Its punchy rhythm and clever lines (“Saturday eats its young, Sunday buries them”) speak directly to the burnout culture of city nightlife. Then “Expanding Universe” shifts gears. With a theatrical vocal interplay and satire aimed at modern disillusionment, it’s imaginative and biting. Finally, “Future Is an F” Word closes with brooding elegance and a hint of menace—its irony lingers.
Produced by Teaboy Palmer, the EP balances polish with personality. It’s bold, strange, and full of life. And that’s what makes it unforgettable.
Lyrics for the title track, “The Manic Phase,” by Tom Minor
Along comes hope
The vain old menace
Going places when there’s no place left to go
Circles of a pale inferno
To and fro
Situation normal, all things unfinished
What’s available for fun?
Here comes a Dullage Village Green unbalancing act between
Squares one and none
(Manic phase!) I feel a-coming round the bend
(Manic phase!) The manic days
Are here again (Manic phase!)
Along comes hope
When you’re past caring
Turn a deaf ear when there’s no blind eye to turn
Melt the frozen rings of Saturn
Watch them burn
Moral compass meeting magnet
Out on a limb a bipolar bear
The aftertaste of the Bohemian diet
Of self-styled saints of Soho Square
(Manic phase!) A brand new space, a brand new place in your new ballpark
(Manic phase!) Speak another tongue under another name
(Manic phase!) In another town another thing a-comin’
(Manic phase!) New persona, gonna play that selfsame game
Along comes hope
Been lying dormant
Turn a corner when your lights have all turned red
Now there’s a need to get excited
You’re streets ahead
Give your wits a proper outing
Send your spirits through the roof
Recreational use of lithium and lukewarm water
Ain’t that the way to spend your youth
(Manic phase!) I feel a-coming round the bend
(Frantic maze!)
Hello madness, my old friend
(Panic preys!) I hear you swarming round the bend
(Manic phase!)
The manic days are here again, manic phase
Manic phase, manic phase
Manic phase
