ARCHIVE: July thru December 2009
December 12th, 2009
You can download our WFMU recording for free. Here's the link: Manikin Live WFMU. Remember to tune in to Evan Davies show every Tuesday night at 11pm on WFMU- it's a great place to find new music or rediscover old ones if you're into that stuff.
We're playing Emos free week on the 2nd of January with the Ape-Shits, Ghost Knife, Serious Tracers and the Vitamins. It's gonna be a long New Year weekend- here's the flyer we're working on. It should be done pretty soon.

December 10th, 2009

Man, it's fuckin cold here in Austin. I hope the cold remains till this weekend when we play Club 1808. It's our last show of the year. This is the first flyer I made that illustrates the band. It was fun making it- Hope you like it.
We're also organizing a carolling pose. No need to play music, just sing and clap your hands. Happy holidays guys and give love.
December 2nd, 2009

Here's a photo inside the WFMU studio. Evan took this photo from the control room. They also just posted our live recording on their website- it should be available on their achive in a few days, the downloadable version. Check it out if you still have not heard it- listen to the whole show. Here's the link: Manikin Live WFMU. Many thanks to Evan Davies and WFMU.
November 29th, 2009
Our recording on WFMU will air December 1st on Evan Davies show, 11pm - 2am eastern standard time- I guess that will be 10pm central time and three hours before if you're living in the west coast. I can't wait to hear it. We're also playing our next show at Club 1808 with Literature, Diagonals and Horse + Donkey on the 11th of December. It should be our last show of the year. Hope you guys had a great turkey weekend.
Nov. 22nd. 2009
We were pissing in the rain Thursday night in New York Brooklyn New York. I woke up with the worst hangover while BJ maintained his normal everyday routine- I hate you BJ. We were already running late and we needed to bring our equipment to the Chelsea Hotel before Alyse gets there from the Airport. We were planning for a perfect evening, including an opening at the MoMA for Tim Burtons exhibit but Bill was still stuck at the bar with his brother in law. We were all dreamers- there's nothing free in this city. We brought our guitars and pedals through the subway- my arms were touching the floor when we got to the Club.
I still had to meet my sister but my phone died- it pretty much ODeed on too much texting the night before but I had enough smart to save her number on someone else's device. I ate some chicken wings at Verlaines (not tom verlaine) with some New York strangers my sister introduced me to. The show started at 9:15 and flew like the wind. I was happy to see some old friends and acquaintances. Austin took over the Cake Shop for a brief moment and then gone. I really hope we did not waste their time cuz we had a blast playing. Thanks so much.
Thanks to all the bands we played with. Special thanks to Tom Hyman and the Imaginary Icons, Evan Davies of WFMU, Foster Care for lending us their equipment our second nignt, Pop 1280 for their generosity.

November 14th, 2009

We leave for NYC soon. Can't wait to see my sister and friends. It's our first time playing there and I am really excited to play where VU, NY Dolls, the Ramones, Television, The Voidoids, Teenage Jesus, and so many of our favorite artist have formed and evolved. We're playing Friday the 20th at the Cake Shop with Imaginary Icons, and (((Microwaves))) and at the Bruar Falls in Brooklyn Saturday with Foster Care. It's been too long, hope to see you.
We had a great time at the Austinist pre fun fun fun showcase at the Mohawk- the fest itself was awesome this year even though it almost rained the whole day Sunday. The Forgetters was also great at Red 7 that evening. Still a little bit in a haze afterwards but there's no time for rest, the East Austin Studio Tour started this weekend and there's so much inspiration to be absorbed. The art performance that started at Rio Rita, to Birds Barber Shop, to some drainage ditch off 5th and ended at the Shan-gri La just reminded my why I live here In Austin. Keep Austin Awesome!
November 1st, 2009
underground, collecting, conspiring, arranging the third movement. It's not your rock and roll, it's not fashion, it's something living like a ghost- indistinguishable, vague and ironic.

Bill at the Waterloo party.
October 27th, 2009

A little change in plans- we're playing the Cake Shop Friday, the 20th of November with the Imaginary Icons and Microwaves (Pitts). We're also playing Bruar Falls in Brooklyn Saturday, the 21st with Foster Care. We have a couple more shows here in Austin before we leave so buy some of our stuff to help us with our trip hehehehaaa- we have not been playing any paying gigs. Asking for money sucks.
October 14th, 2009
We finally secured a show with Imaginary Icons Saturday and now just waiting on a Friday show. Can't wait to get out of this place. It's been so humid here lately and seems like Mr. Sunshine took a holiday and disappeared for his two week vacation. Please come back, I swear not to curse your presence again.
We're playing at the Parlor with Serious Tracers at the end of the month and at the Mohawk a week after. Hope you can join us.
October 1st, 2009
Our show with Cruddy at Sound on Sound was awesome. Thanks for letting us play your show and hope you guys have a great tour.
We're playing a free show at the Mohawk on November 6th- it's the Fun Fun Fun fest weekend. The show is hosted and arranged by Austinist, a local webzine featuring local news and culture about Austin. For more information about the show or for the full schedule, go to their site. We're playing the big stage early, scary I know. Hope you guys can make it.
Our friends in New York, Imaginary Icons and Golden Triangle, are trying to get us a show for our quick visit up there in mid November, the 19th - 21st; we're also playing WFMU in New Jersey. Can't wait to travel- get us out of Austin please. Thanks Ruthy for your efforts. See you at Fun Fun Fun.
September 21st, 2009
We're playing a show this coming Wednesday at Sound on Sound with Cruddy and Dated. It's Cruddy's tour kick off show so better buy some of their merch to help them out a little bit. It starts early in the evening, around 6:30ish. We'll also have our CD version of Stop the Sirens. See you guys then.
September 7th, 2009
We're playing the Super Secret Records showcase at Red 7 this coming weekend, the 11th of September. It's free and there should be some free food also. I think there's only three bands: the Ape-Shits, The Tunnels and Manikin. See you at the show.
Our friend Paul Streckfus recorded us during our show at the Scoot Inn last Saturday. He also plays in Kingdom of Suicide Lovers. Here's the link to our last set. Manikin at Scoot. Thanks a lot Paul.
September 4th, 2009
So we're shooting for the 19th til the 22nd of November to visit New York City. I am really excited if we can make it through. Still workingout the details. I'll try to keep this website as current as I can. Thanks for your interest.
August 31st, 2009
Here's the line up for our show this weekend at the Scoot Inn.
There's an ArtShow at the Trailer Space Records before hand with Cruddy and Al G. playing. It's starts at 6PM and ends around 9ish. I think I'm gonna paint a sexy mushtache on everyone. It should be a great time with free beer.
August 24th, 2009
Our next show is at the Scoot Inn on the fifth of September and a week later at RED 7, the Super Secret Records showcase. The line up is still on the works but I'll try to make a flyer as soon as it's confirmed. Hope you can make it. Anyway, I'm still hoping to record before the years over. Hopefully we can manage to do this between our tight schedule.
Still working on our new refined website. Hope to finish soon.
August 18th, 2009
Our CD version of "Stop the Sirens" should be out soon. We just sent it to the press and it should be here in a couple of weeks. We also have a show at RED 7 with The Tunnels and The Ape-Shits. It's some sort of Super Secret Records showcase on the 11th of September- featuring Super Secret artists. Hope you guys can make it.
We might go to the north east. We still have to iron things out with our contacts but we might be playing a few show around New York- get us a show in your town.....
We're also re-designing our site. It should be better- we're sticking to a simple composition. Hope you'll like it. I should have some new content soon.
July 18th, 2009
Disecting Manikin's Gang Mentality
by Audra Schroeder
The humidity inside Sound on Sound is breathing down our necks this Friday night, invading personal space and stepping on toes. It's understandable. Summer in Austin brings out the more primal instincts in us all. Half the dead punks on the wall here would agree.
Manikin's set starts with a beat – the opening notes to "Beat It," to be exact. It's the day after Michael Jackson's death, and everyone packed in the small North Loop record shop for Manikin's LP release nods and lifts beers in approval. Then drummer Alyse Mervosh subtly changes tempo, and the local quartet shifts from goofing off to straightening up. Suddenly, the oppressive sweat and curious smells inside the store become less of an annoyance than a salve.
Like forefathers Wire and PiL, Manikin is one of those bands that's really good at sounding like itself, something that's evolved through the 5-year-old quartet sculpting and resculpting its sound. There's no experimentation beyond its three-minute marches, no wanky solos or rock & roll posturing. Manikin songs are concise in the punk rock tradition and restrained in their execution.
See the whole story here.
photo by John Anderson