This week we’re Introducing you to Oakland, CA’s noisy power-punk quartet Manatee. Finding this band might just be the most pure form of record store discovery I’ve ever had. I found their first, and at that time only release, seven inch Indecision a few years back at Louisville’s now-defunct Ear-X-tacy Records (R.I.P.) and immediately fell in love with it. Being named after my favorite animal, I couldn’t resist giving the record a shot without first hearing it. What I found was this: a little fuzz, a whole lot of pop sensibility, and a fun and polished sound reminiscent of The Replacements and other 80’s and 90’s punk/power pop bands.
It would be years before the band released any additional music, and I waited like a good little school boy for any sign that Manatee was still active. In 2011 they released a flexi single on Slumberland Records . It’s like this band has always been after my heart. Seriously, who still releases a flexi single? Single Payer Class War showed the band moving in a slightly different direction than their first seven inch single, into a looser, more fuzz-driven punk aesthetic with a sense of humor that suits them perfectly. The A-side for Single Payer Class War is a song about then-Presidential-hopeful Barack Obama and the B-side is called “Chased By Anderson Cooper.” It’s here where we now find the Bay Area’s Manatee, a littler noisier and a lot more fun. Check out their Part Time Punks Session from 2012 below where they cover The Cure’s “A Forest.” You know you need more power-punk in your life. Hello, Manatee.
Tags: Manatee, Slumberland Records, Introducing, Oakland
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http://www.the1stfive.com/news/introducing-manatee