The Both - Biography
In 2012, singer-songwriter Aimee Mann, former vocalist for the new wave band 'Til Tuesday and Academy Award and Grammy nominee for her work on Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia, toured with punk/indie rocker Ted Leo of the Spinanes, and of course, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists. Mann and Leo would often collaborate on stage, and by December of that year, they started writing their first songs together. After the tour, they started a cross-country songwriting exchange, sending choruses, bridges, and lyrics back and forth. In spring 2013, Mann and Leo played their first show together under the name #BOTH.
That same year, Mann and Leo announced they would be releasing an EP. However, the duo soon realized they had enough material for a full-length album and went into the studio with Paul Bryan, the producer of Mann's last three albums and a longtime member of her touring band. Mann and Leo's self-titled debut as The Both was released in April 2014 on Superego Records, followed by an extensive North American tour.