Rooftop Vigilantes & Mannequin Men Split 7" Replay Records 2012

Rooftop Vigilantes & Mannequin Men Split 7" Replay Records 2012 CAT# RR004

Man, the Replay Lounge in Lawrence, KS puts out records now.  That's freaking rad.  My favorite year in college was spent living at 1001 Rhode Island, a block down the street from the Replay.  Walking to a place to get drunk is the best way to get drunk.  And, I was still cool.  I remember when I was 24 and done with school; all the sudden I found myself saying, "When did all these fucking kids turn 21," at the Replay.  It's a hip place.  So hip, that the KU Greek community thinks it's a gay bar.  That's insanely stylish.  Now, they put out records to boot, again, that's freaking rad.

Before I go into this 7" though, just a few more notes on the Replay. I sneaked into see the last Regrets show (under age).  And, I saw Elliott Smith perform there with like 5 other people in attendance.  I love that place.

This 7" came to me by chance, but it's still readily available at the Love Garden and I assume the Replay.  I wouldn't know about the Replay, I'm too old and square.  The 7" features Lawrence band, Rooftop Vigilantes, along with Chicago punks, Mannequin Men.  The Mannequin Men I know, they're kind of a Chicago garage-punk fixture now-a-days.  Not local, but shows the Replay means business with their record label.  They probably couldn't have paired them with a better band.  I don't know anything about the Rooftop Vigilantes other than these songs are great.

The tunes 'Automatic Trash' and 'Trouble Making Words' are relentless.  The band is literally everything I've wanted pop punk band to sound like.  I've never wanted to hear suburbanite kids play crisp, clean chords and sing with a fake British accent about boogers and farts.  Pop punk should sound like this.  Literally, punks attempting pop tunes while screaming and leaving all the mistakes in.  The garage sounds you get from these tracks--the winding organs, the broken scream along harmonies, the loud guitars--it's perfect.  Highly recommended garage rock.

Bandcamp Site
Live at the Replay
Replay Record