Mannequin Pussy’s music feels like a resilient and galvanizing shout that demands to be heard. Across four albums, the Philadelphia rock band that consists of Colins “Bear” Regisford (bass, vocals), Kaleen Reading (drums, percussion), Maxine Steen (guitar, synths), and Marisa Dabice (guitar, vocals) has made cathartic tunes about despairing times. “There's just so much constantly going on that feels intentionally evil that trying to make something beautiful feels like a radical act ,” says Dabice. “The ethos of this band has always been to bring people together.” Their latest I Got Heaven, which is out March 1 via Epitaph Records, is the band’s most fully realized LP yet. Over 10 ambitious tracks which abruptly turn from searing punk to inviting pop, the album is deeply concerned with desire, the power in being alone, and how to live in an unfeeling and unkind world. It’s a document of a band doubling down on their unshakable bond to make something furious, thrilling, and wholly alive.
It took us a while to get to Big Smile, Greer’s long-awaited debut album. After four years and two EPs, the foursome behind Greer was feeling burnt and disconnected from the songs they’d written and toured. They went their separate ways for more than a year, retreating to their Southern California homes to decompress. When they reconvened in 2023, they went back to where it all started: drummer Lucas Ovalle’s garage. It was in this familiar environment that Ovalle, guitarist lead singer Josiah, guitarist Corbin Jacques, and bassist Seth Thomson learned how to be friends again and shared all the anxieties and revelations they’d endured on hiatus through crafting songs.