Back in August, Mannequin Pussy shared the bloodthirsty banger "I Got Heaven," an absolute ripper offset by an ascendant '90s pop chorus. Turns out that single is the title track for their John Congleton-produced fourth album, arriving March 1st on Epitaph. The bar set by "I Got Heaven" would be tough to clear for any band, but Mannequin Pussy keep the streak going with "I Don't Know You," a delirious float of a song that revels in the obsessive joys of tending to a new crush.
An almost folk-like shuffle — urged on by Kaleen Reading's brushed drumstokes — is eventually subsumed by a wall of buzzing guitar from Colins Regisford and Maxine Steen's circular synth pattern. "I know four, five, six, seven ways to get ahead / But I wouldn't know how to get you into my bed / There are three little words / That I wish I had said / But I wouldn't tell you / No, I couldn't tell you," Marisa Dabice sings, trading her throat-shredding howl for a conversational patter.
It's not quite the bolt-from-the-skies of "I Got Heaven," but "I Don't Know You" is still a thrill, illustrating the ways that Mannequin Pussy have gradually expanded their sound in the decade since their debut. Dabice and Co. used to do one thing very very well — now, it feels like there's no limit to what they can accomplish.
(Epitaph)An almost folk-like shuffle — urged on by Kaleen Reading's brushed drumstokes — is eventually subsumed by a wall of buzzing guitar from Colins Regisford and Maxine Steen's circular synth pattern. "I know four, five, six, seven ways to get ahead / But I wouldn't know how to get you into my bed / There are three little words / That I wish I had said / But I wouldn't tell you / No, I couldn't tell you," Marisa Dabice sings, trading her throat-shredding howl for a conversational patter.
It's not quite the bolt-from-the-skies of "I Got Heaven," but "I Don't Know You" is still a thrill, illustrating the ways that Mannequin Pussy have gradually expanded their sound in the decade since their debut. Dabice and Co. used to do one thing very very well — now, it feels like there's no limit to what they can accomplish.
