We've ALL been living our lives too long without the comforting mid-tempo punk perfection of a 2LP set from one of Australian punk's most underrated acts of the late 70s-early 80s, the Manikins. Best known as the "other" band that splintered off with The Scientists after the demise of the Cheap Nasties, Manikins are just as incredible, as this glorious double album will repeatedly prove. Neither as cheap or nasty as their previous incarnation, they tow a solid & simple rock'n roll line, inflected with that special something that only comes from the Australian bands we know and love, yet since they fizzled out after only three 7-inch singles. The first, the absolutely classic "I Never Thought I'd Find, Someone Who Could Bo So Kind" is the lead off track on the first record, naturally, as this was their debut single and it's just still so impressively stark and powerful, it's almost hard to believe it's not a FM radio staple in some lower-fidelity alternate universe. Their amazing follow-up single, "Premonition" is a few tracks later but no less impressive and impeccable. I really don't think humans can make music like this anymore, just the vocal cadence alone would drop most modern bands to their knees, The Manikins are almost too good to be real, even when Australian music was having it's real moment. And since this stuff was tucked away for years, it's nothing short of an underground revelation and an immediate purchase for any fans of the golden age of Australian Punk and Power Pop.
But two WHOLE LPs' worth you say? How in the fuck have I not heard of this stuff? Sorry bud, but that's why it's so hard to get over how good this material is, and how it's been slept on for so long. The Scientists are one of the greatest Australian bands of all-time, YES, but this is just like finding out that you had a long-lost brother or sister that is your age and has the same taste as you, it's such a consistent set of perfect tracks. Not even the so-called "live" material that's used in most over-packaged reissues is present here, the band just had that much extra studio material that was unreleased, and glory be to Lobby Lloyd almighty that we've got this collection to pore over.
Thanks so much to Manufactured Recordings/Captured Tracks for getting this out there, be sure to grab a copy of the 2LP set at your local store, or right HERE, and STREAM your life away with the whole thing, right here:
