TOP FIVE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THEE MANIPULATORS RIGHT NOW…:
5. Their debut LP, Ease Up On The Breakdowns! is available in so many places its hard to count. Actually, three – Neptoon Records (3561 Main St. in Vancouver), in our online store, and on iTunes.
4. Thee Manipulators will be playing Victoria, BC on June 12th at Logan’s as a part of Earthquake Shake Festival, as well as at Chapel Arts in Vancouver this Friday, June 5th.
3. You can check out Thee Manipulators at SLED ISLAND 2010 in Calgary, a festival that all of us at Neptoon are totally excited for. Thee Manips play around 11pm on Saturday, July 3rd at The Distillery.
2. College radio is loving Thee Manipulators! Debuting on the national chart at #33 two weeks ago, their position remains unwavering. Neptoon would like to thank all the college stations for continuing to support local and Canadian music, and who bring new noise to new ears on a regular basis.
#1! Your boyfriend-in-zine-form, Beat Route, has published a great review of Ease Up On The Breakdowns! in their June issue. It wasn’t online yet, so I had to type it out, which makes the whole experience a little more blood, sweat and tears. Enjoy.
Thee Manipulators – Ease Up On The Breakdowns! – Neptoon Records
By Brady Kirchnew – Beatroute June 2010
With the endless barrage of newfangled pink and garage bands exploding onto the scene, trying their hand at wooing the new generation of rockers and freaks, it’s difficult to know what records are worth your time, money and eardrums this summer. With their inaugural LP, Ease Up On The Breakdowns!, Vancouver’s Thee Manipulators have reached deep inside their veteran rock’n’roll grey matter and pulled out one of the top rock albums in recent memory.
Boasting members of the late, legendary, New Town Animals and The Gung-Ho’s, Thee Manipulators have constructed a volatile and talent-infused garage classic. Clocking in at a total of thirty-five minutes of fury, Ease Up on The Breakdowns is permeated with subtle, psychedellic hooks and imbued with jangly southern riffs and classic R&B roots (think The Sonics, not R Kelly).
Fused with pitch-perfect production and the most mind-melting guitar fuzz in contemporary rock, duelling guitars vie for love on the instant classic “Brass Tax” as lead singer Mike Roche proclaims, “Two of us in this equation, but only one is going down for evasion”, while the track builds into a climax of organ wizardry and pop genius. The title track kicks in halfway through the recorrd as the listener enjoys one of the fattest and tastiest, ass-shaking bass lines in current garage. The lightning paced fortissimo slows only for a moment on the requisite favourite, “Petals Of Petulance:, crooning soulfully and sincere with faultless use of tremolo guitar and complementary, air-tight drum fills.
Additional favourites include “Minor League Fame”, “Ooga Booga Man” and “Crucifixiated”. Thankfully, all the quick-witted lyrics are included with this release to keep your vocal chords loose all summer long.
THE FLIP SIDE, SEE YOU ON IT.
ja / neptoon
