The Mantles

With a much-lauded full-length for Siltbreeze and a recent 12" EP for Mexican Summer (not to mention numerous singles now collecting collector scum prices), THE MANTLES have been dead-on in distilling a contemporary pop / psych concoction that has earned comparisons to both New Zealand's Flying Nun label stable (Chills, Clean, Verlaines et al) and to the early 80s LA 'Paisley Underground' scene (The Dream Syndicate, The Rain Parade).

While the Siltbreeze LP burrowed deeper into the molten core of rock, mining both the shimmer of Byrds-ian jangle-pop and the gauzy atmosphere of the Velvets' darker moments, the recent EP (and upcoming single for French label SDZ) see the band threatening to move toward a more overtly pop sound. That's not to say that the grimey atmospherics have been completely replaced with sunshine and lollipops,but with a few years under the belt, the band has begun to crawl out of it's reverb-drowned cocoon with less of a tendency to slip into extended moody dirge, and with a newfound punk crackle and sharper songwriting.

After recent extensive U.S. tours with Woods and Ty Segall, the band recently returned from a two week UK jaunt with Nodzzz. Album on Slumberland in the works!

“… a vibe somewhere between the crisp gauze of Midwest groups associated with the early-’80s garage revival (Vertebrats, Plasticland, etc.) and the mysto-stroke of late-’80s New Zealand.” –Byron Coley, The Wire

“… really stokes the node in its uncanny similarity to old-school Paisley Underground–you know, before it had been so sadly tagged. The strains, strums, and streams that permeate so lost and wonderfully … remind my tired soul of early Leaving Trains, The Last, as well as the roster that made up Steve Wynn’s Down There label.” - Siltblog.

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