Manikin is one of several current bands emerging in the nascent Austin post-punk/new wave revivalist scene. Their rhythm section gravitates toward classic punk 130 bpm grooves. However, Manikin’s overall sound evokes a sense of nostalgia for late 70’s British music scene when punk had evolved to embrace a more experimental style, complex arrangements and primitive melodic elements. It’s no wonder then that frontman Alfie sites as a major influence the seminal Siouxsie & the Banshees.
After three previous albums almost entirely in a classic punk vein, Manikin’s incipient post-punk charm is displayed on their latest 2009 LP Stop the Sirens. Alfie’s effective but not affected use of telephone distortion voice effects as well as the introduction of trumpeter Bill Jeffery’s frantic brass melodies splashed like cold water across the irreverent face of songs such as "Leaders" and "Perfect Pictures" widen the style gap between 2005’s Still and last year’s Sirens. The post-punk aesthetic is rounded out by Alfie’s occasionally melodic, occasionally discordant guitar. The synthy, stuttering guitar riff on "Fumes" would sit well in any song from the Stranglers’ 1979 classic "Raven." Drummer Alyse periodically moves away from the stiff rhythmic confines of punk purity. "Perfect Pictures" serves up a fast rolling tom-snare call-and-response reminiscent of Killing Joke that props up the hollow vocal harmony between Alyse and Alfie. Manikin throw down a tight and invigorating live performance of past and current songs that fans of classic punk and early post-punk/new wave alike will enjoy.
–London Ferguson
[Ed.: You can catch Mankin this Saturday night at The Parlor, and again during SXSW at Beerland, March 17th…]