Mansion – S/T

Not quite no wave, nor post-punk, nor noise rock, really, Bay Area-based upstart Mansion makes the kind of guitar-based racket that isn’t easy to pigeonhole. The cantankerous quartet, whose lineup includes Adam Keith of the affectedly gorgeous and beat-riddled Cube project, takes an artfully anarchic approach to dense but agile noise, operating on a similar plane as colorfully nihilistic outfits Sightings, Swamp Ape, and Ex Models. The band’s self-released debut, recorded to four-track by drummer Jeff Cook, is a six-song rail of addled and targeted ululation. The opening track “Ronny Goes to Jail” almost falls into the picture with an endlessly collapsing cycle of rhythm and walls of chordal nuance. The song resembles more of anything from Devo’s catalog (“Come Back Jonee,” especially) shrouded in a rusted trash heap of effects than on Touch & Go, Load or Industrial Records. “Ultimate Grand Supreme” closes the six-song set in a harrowing shriek of hyper-repetitive paroxysm, with vocalist Candace Lazarou bemoaning, “Don’t worry, baby. We’ll get them next time.” Purchase a copy of Mansion by visiting Mansion’s Bandcamp or by emailing Adam Keith directly ([email protected]).