Man on Man

Roddy Bottum, the keyboardist from Faith No More, joined his partner Joey Holman to launch MAN ON MAN, a project conceived to capture queer romance amid the COVID-19 era through buoyant indie dance-rock. The pair first surfaced with the single “Daddy” in 2020 and then unveiled their self-titled debut LP the next year. Their 2023 follow-up, Provincetown, extended the same focus on celebrating and examining queer love, merging thick distortion, gleaming keyboards, and forceful rhythms across defiant statements such as “I Feel Good” and “Showgirls.”

Bottum, who had disclosed his sexuality in the early ’90s, and Holman, formerly of the Christian group Cool Hand Luke, sought to stay musically active while confined at home in early 2020. With restrictions approaching, they relocated from Brooklyn to Oxnard, California, and their resulting collaboration yielded openly sex-positive songs honoring their partnership. The material came together rapidly, leading to the May 2020 release of “Daddy.”

Polyvinyl began issuing their recordings in early 2021, starting with the third song, “1983.” Every advance track appeared on the full-length MAN ON MAN, which the label put out that May. Provincetown followed in June 2023, again balancing affirmation and social critique across further queer anthems, among them the dark “Hush” featuring Dinosaur Jr’s J Mascis.