The Preatures

On stage Isabella ‘Izzi’ Manfredi is a ball of energy. Adrenaline pulses through her, allowing her to contort her body, cover the stage and give the best damn show around. While her adrenaline is a blessing in front of the crowd, her high-energy nature has been something to overcome behind the scenes.
When performing isn’t a possibility for release, Izzi has taken to finding alternative means. The most recent – and successful – of which was a natural horsemanship session in the Gold Coast.
“I’ve been trying to find things to help with my anxiety – I just get so much fucking anxiety – each day and I just need something to help me and it’s been better than anything I’ve ever tried. And I’ve tried so much to get myself calm,” Izzi says.
“Horses are just really intuitive and they pick up on what you’re feeling and respond to you. For me I have super high adrenaline and it just shoots through me all day and I’m one of those people who like to be really busy and just doing lots of stuff.
“It’s really funny when you step back and realise how that’s affecting other people, and the horses pick up on it instantly. It’s harder for me to actually get the horses to walk than it was to get them to canter because they’re just responding to my adrenaline. So I was like ‘All right, let’s go’.”
You’d be lucky to run through life without having some sort of experience with anxiety, and unfortunately for Izzi hers just happened to start a bit sooner than some.
“The first time I had really extreme anxiety I was 9 or 10 years old and I really didn’t know what it was,” Izzi says.
“And then I had another bout of it when I was 11 or 12 and it was so bad I used to get up in the morning and be afraid of when it hit the afternoon because I knew when the sun went down I’d get really anxious – I’m an only child so I didn’t really like being alone or sleeping alone.
“But it’s just always been part of who I am. I think anxiety and depression are really interesting because by modern society they’re considered as disorders or illnesses, or a mental illness, but to me they’re just products of the body. The body is really intelligent and it’ll tell you if something is wrong, or if you’ve got something you need to address. Not wanting to dismiss clinical depression or chronic fatigue (as I’ve had both) but it becomes a ferocious illness or a debilitating state to be in, but it’s just really telling you that you’ve got shit that you’re not dealing with or that you’re not confronting.”
Over the years through writing music, performing on stage and other means Izzi has learned to deal with what her body is telling her. The feeling that she gains from performing isn’t something that she keeps to herself, Izzi shares it with her fans, as that’s what it’s all about.
“Performing for me is really cathartic and the stage has always felt like my home. I’ve always felt safe, even when it’s been a struggle,” she says.
“It’s really about getting to that moment when it’s transcendence, that’s really what you’re looking for. Even at an entertainment level, you’re just looking for transcendence. That’s what the audience wants, that’s what you want from your band, you just want to get to that moment where you really free.”
Izzi can be seen sharing this moment with her fans regardless o f her current mood, health or weather – the band are truly doing it for the fans.
“I’ve seen a lot of performers where if they’re not 100 per cent they don’t go on. They can’t disappoint them and they can’t handle that fear of not being good enough,” Izzi says.
“But for me, performing isn’t about that, it’s about the night and the moment and who you are at that moment, because if people truly love you and the people that come to our shows love our music then they don’t really care if we play everything perfectly – that’s not what they’re there for. They’re not here to hear the record, they’re there to see us and experience something that they’re only going to experience that night and that night only.
“The best gigs I’ve played in my life have been the ones where I’m literally on my death bed before the show. They have always been my best gigs because you have to pull from so deep within yourself to do the show. And they’re great!”
While you mightn’t come to hear the record, there’s good news from The Preatures as the band are currently in the works of making new music. Some of which, you may just hear in their upcoming shows.
When & Where:  170 Russell, Melbourne – September 11, Theatre Royal, Castlemaine – September 12 & Karova Lounge, Ballarat – September 13
Written by Amanda Sherring