BUNNY X - They Demand Fun | An Interview
With big beats and a stage presence for the ages the beautiful ladies of Bunny X are a force to be reckoned with. Sleek production and the catchiest tunes this side of the Hudson River all culminate to captivate their fans the world over.
Primarily known for Italo Disco the devil may care duo that are Mary Hanley and Abigail “Abbi” Ferguson have been sending temperatures soaring since 2013 and draw on influences ranging from the Pet Shop Boys to Erasure and Timecop1983 to early Madonna and beyond. Whilst they generally stay true to the Italo Disco sound they have an acute affinity with the Synthwave Genre and we’re all the luckier for it.
Recently signed to Synthwave Label Oasis ‘Aztec Records’ their star will continue to ascend and we can expect big big things to come.
From the city that never sleeps, we don’t sleep on this duo and Forged took the exciting opportunity to interview the ladies about all things Bunny X past and the glittering dancefloor of their future...take a look!
So happy to have you ladies with me here on Forged, I have been following your career
with great interest for a good while now. Congratulations of course on all your success to
date and that stunning single with Marvel83 ‘NYC Sunrise’. How do you feel 2020 has gone
for you?
Abigail: We’re very happy to be here, thank you for having us and thank you so much for
the support! Ahh yes, Marvel83’ was wonderful to work with - such a talented artist and
kind person. 2020 was...rough to put it simply. I think everyone certainly experienced their
fair share of struggles and we were not immune as NYC was extremely hard hit with
Covid-19 cases. Like everyone else, our day-to-day routines essentially came to a
standstill. But, a silver lining certainly was having more time to write and flesh out new
material. We ended up working on several italo-inspired tracks in the earlier part of the
year but, as time went on, we started working on a number of retrowave/80s songs,
inspired by such artists as Sellorekt/LA Dreams, Don Dellpiero and Timecop1983.
Mary: Hi Ash! Thanks so much for having us! 2020 had its share of ups and downs, all of
which I’m sure you know about already - the ‘Rona, the Presidential Election, the absence
of live music in venues, etc...but despite all of that and more, I feel that 2020 taught us a
lot as well. We all collectively needed to learn how to dial things down, and take very
deep breaths...not easy at first, as we’re all trying to get things done all the time. Being
at home has felt at times like a lovely vacation, as I had no agenda! LOL. But, all in all, I
think that slowing down and really considering what is important, what things we love and
need in our lives - good people and cherished friends, chill mode time, self care, and of
course, self love. No regrets! This time has also allowed Abbi and I to move into writing/
creating our first Synthwave album, so we’ve also been busy working on that. We’re super
excited!
Of course, you’re now signed to Aztec Records which is very exciting how are they to work
with?
Abigail: The Aztec team is fantastic - everyone has been extremely welcoming and helpful.
I highly recommend them to any artists that are looking for representation as they
definitely go the extra mile and work to enhance an artist’s vision as opposed to stifling it.
Mary: Yes! They have been very supportive of us, and we truly very much appreciate
that :)
Tell us a little bit about how Bunny X came to be?
Abigail: Well, long story short, Mary and I became friends here in NYC in 2005 and quickly
discovered our mutual affection for karaoke (haha). After a while, we realized that our
voices seemed to blend pretty well together and eventually (after singing back-up vocals
for some local acts) we thought it would be fun to try writing some original material of our
own. Not long after this, we began working with a producer in the area and released a
synthpop EP in 2012 called Lovespy.
We weren’t quite satisfied with the project though and realized we were still kind of looking for our “sound.” After meeting another local producer, Conrad Kaneshiro, things began to take off and we started co-writing some italo disco style tracks with him, the first of which came out in 2013 (“If You Say Yes”).
We went on to release a bunch of tracks with him over the years and continue to work on
material with him now.
Mary: Abbi’s brainchild, Bunny X, became a reality in approximately 2010. Abbi met our
producer, Conrad Kaneshiro, at an Italo Disco party she and a friend were hosting and they