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 Snackn' With... >>> CD
Swamp Thang! >>> CD
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| The wacked-out glory of free-fall theremins and wave-breaking surf guitar. Named for the famed endangered sea mammal, this is a band with fresh ocean-spray and salsa stains on their well-worn Hawaiian shirts. They also sport soli! d punk credits, guaranteed to warm even the most jaded post-punk heart. After 5 years of preserving the tradition of wave breaking surf guitars, The Manatees have released their second and best effort yet, "Swamp Thang" A new CD from the Manatees features 14 rock - stomping instrumental hits sure to pound your beach. The Manatees not only draw on the power of surf rock guitars but reach out for other influences like country, punk, reggae, and ska to fill out the instrumental emotions passed on through this music.AND boy do they love the Ventures. The Ventures too were not satisfied to play only the rip-roaring sounds of surf instrumental rock, but drew on many different genres to round out their instrumental sound. Who knew that instrumental surf was virtually invented in the Pacific North West by Tacoma natives, The Ventures. Seattle's, The Manatees, are hip to the fact and have been hell bent on preserving and expanding the tradition for over three years. Listen for Latin, African, punk, Arabic and reggae influences mixed with the surf. The result is music as natural as a camel on the beach drinking a Mai-Tai.  Artist description: The wacked-out glory of free-fall Theremins and wave-breaking surf guitar. Named for the famed endangered sea mammal, this is a band with fresh ocean-spray and salsa stains on their well-worn Hawaiian shirts. They also sport solid punk credits, guaranteed to warm even the most jaded post-punk heart. Music style: instrumental surf, rock, salsa, world Musical influences: All music from 1300BC to present. Artist history: The Manatees are former members of THE DEHUMANIZERS, SLAM SUZZANNE, THE MILWAUKEE ALL STARS, and THE SOILERS. Group members: Phil Manatee: Guitars/Theremin (Dehumanizers, Slam Suzzanne, Soilers)Mark Manatee: Guitars:electric/acoustic (Milwaukee All Stars) Ed Manatee: Drums (Dehumanizers)Dan Manatee: Bass Instruments: Guitars, Theremin, Bass, Drums |
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NEWS I - The Manatees have a song on Road Fools 8. A great BMX video - in the vein of the old great skate videos like Bones Brigade - this one features 13 renegade bikers storming the Midwest in search of fresh street and skatepark terrain. Stops include Madison, WI, Minneapolis, MN, The Oval, Mankato, MN, Racine, WI, Mundelein, IL, Chicago, IL, Joliet, IL, Milwaukee, WI, and Appleton, WI. Featuring bikers Matt Beringer, Steve Crandall, Chris Doyle, George Dossantos, John Heaton, Josh Heino, John Englebert, Rick Moliterno, Dave Osato, Brian Terada, Joe Tiseo, Brian Vowell, and Brian Wizmerski. Cover artwork and words by Steve Crandall. In memory of Joe Tiseo. More hereNEWS II - Live MP3's from The Manatees' on-air live radio show at KFJC in Santa Cruz, CA. Including great band commentary before a few songs and the DJ intro and outro. Find them here. |
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| If you dig The Manatees... You might want to check out Parker and Lily or White Hassle at the Orange store here. | |||||||||||
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| THE ROCKET MAGAZINE "Seattle, Washington surf group THE MANATEES have been around for awhile and deserve some more attention. They make strange and beautiful surf sounds with sinister undertones, a kind of cross between Dick Dale and Danny Elfman--groovy action themes for drowning people". MUSIC DISH, 3.22.02, Ben Ohmart The recording of this album took place in a dark and musty garage affectionately known as The Collaboratory, over three days with no one song performed more than three times. What you hear is the real Manatees.' And what is that exactly? Well it's Phil Manatee - guitars, theremin, ukulele, mandolin, lap steel Ed Manatee - drums, percussion, bullhorn Mark Manatee - guitars Dank Manatee - bass Yes, for a change, you can HONESTLY say that this group IS The Manatees. I would describe their core music as surf - those wild guitars that like to stay clanging and loose, but which have an honest (not camp, not degrading) love for the old genre of rock before the Beatles messed everything up. Take 'Crevice' for example. A very fluid arrangement of 1963 guitar where the house of the rising sun grew up, where wipeout had its first disgrace off the surfboard, and where Munsters were always walking out of stairways. Even the 2:16 minute length cuts a track into retro-mode singles, where you could actually Have an instrumental track without remixing it at all. Of course the entire cd clocks in at 52 minutes, about double what an early Beach Boys disc went for way back when. Except for part of the opening of the introductory 'Coconuts' everything you hear is music without the words; the best kind. All the vast and wave-shaking feelings can collide in your brain so that you make up the stories in your head. Most of the tunes seem to be written by P. Bentz, which is odd because it's not a Manatee. Regardless, it's a whole lot of fun out here. Music meant for wide open spaces, however, not for sitting in a stuffy bookstore like me. You sincerely need to hear this stuff in the car, with the windows open, with a group of friends good enough to trust with your life, and Then you shall see the summit of this group's talent. Oh yes. |
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