A Look Into the Intricate Debut EP, "Subtle Fiction I" from Washington, DC's Merci

Photo by Liz Peterson

When asked to describe the band’s vibe in 3 words, Seth and Jack pinned Merci down perfectly-- dark, fun, and cool music.

The Washington, D.C. band, Merci, is a group of five guys all with a passion for the music they create: Seth Coggeshall [vocals, guitar], Nick Jones [guitar], Colby Witko [vocals, keys], Justin Mason [bass], and Jack Dunigan [drums]. In discussing the origin of the band, Jack explains, “We came together in high school sort of from different projects. Jack and I met in high school, and I met Nick in high school. I don't know if Justin and Nick met in high school, but I think they met some time afterwards. It was just sort of a matter of all these different projects that we were all in separately kind of coalescing over the years.” After all participating in their own journeys and experience in other bands, Merci officially formed in 2018, and has since been developing their dynamic as a band, constructing songs for their debut album, Subtle Fiction I. 

“We were all friends, you know. We were all sort of into the same kind of music and into the same stuff,” Seth detailed, ”We just had this one project going for a long time under a different name, and then we started filling out the line up with Justin, and Colby eventually, and then Jack joining in, so that's where it all sort of spawned from.”

Merci has a very elaborate and intriguing genre style. With a blend of both alternative rock, mixed with pop punk, Merci’s 5-track debut album, Subtle Fiction I, is a collection of songs that are constantly entertaining. 

Jack explained, “I think we've always just written and played music that we've been into. So, it started out with just metal music. We were a metal band. We were just young teens, and then it evolved into this, as our tastes matured and changed like fine wine.”

“Jack and I were in a metal band, and then I was in a pop-punk band with Nick. Then Jack, Colby, and I were in like a post hardcore band, and then it just evolved,” Seth elaborates, “We kind of just combined the feeling of all those different genres into one sound that we sort of matured into.”

Subtle Fiction I is an immensely intricate debut album, with insanely creative and diverse lyricism and instrumentals. Each and every song on the album’s track listing involves highly complex metaphors, complicated and vivid imagery, and a ton of references. 

“I think it's just like all those pieces coming together into this big smoothie of music”

In discussing the songwriting process for the album, Seth explained, “It really comes to me over a long period of time, and it's just a matter of these phrases and these images popping into my head. I'll write them down on my phone, and then I'll have this collection word vomit. I'll go through it all, and I'll just try to identify like, ‘what am I even saying here, what am I even thinking?’ I'll find like, ‘oh this connects to this and this connects to this’ out of the noise, and I’ll sort of pull out some kind of theme or maybe like a loose story that I'm trying to tell unintentionally. It’s sort of like my brain just talking about my own life without me even realizing what I'm necessarily talking about at the time, until after the fact, and it's very instinctual.”

The new album does have some alternative rock musical influences - My Chemical Romance and Fall Out Boy - but also includes some pop influences such as Lana Del Rey and Lorde, as well as pop punk like The Killers. Seth talks about growing up in the “mid-2000’s mall-rock generation,” and how the blend of all these artists established a really fun genre and creative collection of music in one album. 

As for the overall production of the album, there are many moments where the listener can audibly hear moments where the music just clicked for the band. In both “City Haircut” and “The Palm,” the vibrant sounds, wildly sophisticated riffs, and engaging beats mixed with the impressive lyricism establish songs that you become absorbed in. 

“It was more like individual ideas, and bringing them to the group, and then refining them as a group. You know, where I may have collaborated on an initial song idea with Colby and then created a sketch of the song. Then as a group we would come together, and the rest of the guys would just take the ideas that I may have sort of sketched out and just embellish and sort of bring them to life in a way that I couldn't,” Seth explained about the production of the album for the band.

Almost every song thus far from Subtle Fiction I has been accompanied with a music video. The different music videos all consistently portray really fun and beautiful locations. With “Never Coming Back” and “City Haircut,” both videos included intricate and fiercely creative editing styles and patterns. 

“We’ll probably keep doing it for the next couple songs. It also helps a lot with budgeting by shooting the way we do, but I mean at some point we would probably end up transitioning to a crew,” Jack explained, “That will be cool because we'll have all this experience, and it will always be this very hands-on kind of thing for us.”

With the pandemic, there hasn’t been a lot of opportunity for live shows for the band, but it is something they look forward to being able to do again soon enough. They hope to be able to travel and tour as a group sometime soon! In talking about a possible tour in the future, they hope to hit their hometown first, and then adventure to different cities and countries, with the UK on the top of their radar. 

“It's going to be difficult to get the feel for it [Subtle Fiction I] in a live setting, but I think once we do, it's going to totally totally slay.” - Seth Coggeshall

In discussing the future of Merci, Jack and Seth hinted at a possible Subtle Fiction II, and the hopes of live shows and touring later down the line. But for now, make sure to check out Merci’s debut album, Subtle Fiction I, available to stream and download now, as well as the music videos for each track!