ANIMAL MANNEQUIN!

Download: Animal Mannequin - Demo+

(Streaming link at the bottom of the post)

As is the case with so many bands, Animal Mannequin existed in garages with a handful of transitional lineups for a while before they made a public debut.  I spoke with singer/guitarist Rhea Lewitzki, bassist Jasmine Watson, and drummer Jeff Enzor to get their story, or however much of it they could remember.

Rhea started Animal Mannequin in San Pedro, CA in 2002 or 2003, shortly after she finished high school.  Prior to AM she had a project called I Artichoke You, about which she didn't have anything interesting [or, I suspect, non-embarrassing] to say.  She met Jasmine through a mutual friend.   

Jasmine:

"I had never played bass in a band before but had been learning on my own; learning songs by Flux of Pink Indians, Joy Division, The Cure...  I went to Rhea’s house in San Pedro to try out. The garage had been converted into a very cute living room/studio space. I remember playing part of Lovesong by The Cure, learning a couple Animal Mannequin songs and being asked to be in the band"

The first solid lineup of Animal Mannequin was Rhea, Jasmine, Andrew Monzon on keyboard, and Pete Mackinnon on drums.  Just before their first show Pete was in a pretty serious car accident.

  

Jasmine:

"A lady making a right onto PCH clipped the back of his truck as she accelerated onto the major street and fish tailed his truck ultimately causing it to flip until he landed upside down on top of some newspaper vestibules. He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and somehow was not ejected from his truck. He just kind of pressed himself into the seat as the truck flipped fully aware of what was happening the whole time. He was surprisingly mostly unharmed, just understandably sore from what I remember. We were very psyched that our friend made it out alive and mostly uninjured but we were unsure if he’d be able to play our show. So Rhea and I got together and practiced playing bass drum or high hat along with our guitars. We practiced until we felt confident we could play the show like that and it was fun learning our songs this way but thankfully in the end Pete was well enough to play."

Their first show was at Sacred Grounds, a coffee shop on the corner of 6th and Pacific in San Pedro that held all ages shows several nights a week for years, a true rarity at the time.  A place where young musicians and music heads could meet and perform, Sacred Grounds was possibly the most important venue for nascent scenesters in the South Bay area while it was around.

Rhea:

"That was a big deal for me. Growing up in San Pedro it was something I looked up to doing, which is kind of silly now, but, at 17 it seemed cool."

This is when I was introduced to the band, and they quickly made an impression.  Rhea, waifish and painfully shy, hiding behind over-sized flower petals taped to her microphone while she sang in a surprisingly well tuned and powerful voice; Jasmine always beaming as if there was nothing she would rather be doing; Pete smashing on the drums, overflowing with incorrigible enthusiasm; they were always a blast.  They played a handful of what Rhea lovingly recalls as "dirty beach punk" shows, including at Sacred Grounds, Naja's in Redondo Beach and the now local-legendary demolition party at Tom Dunbabin's apartment in Hermosa Beach.

Jasmine:

"Tom was moving out of his apartment because the building was to be torn down. Instead of carpet his floor was covered in a thick, beachy layer of sand. We crammed into the tiny living room and everyone went nuts. I’ve seen pictures from that show and so many people are smiling, moving, dancing and jumping off of things."

Pete left the band around 2004 to join the thrashy hardcore band Find Him and Kill Him in San Diego.  He was replaced by Jeff Enzor, who was suggested to the band by mutual friend Gabe Aubad.

Jeff:

"He asked me and I was reluctant because 'I wasn't really into punk' but I liked the demo I heard enough to give it a shot."

With a new drummer, Animal Mannequin finally got into the studio.  Over the course of a few days they recorded their debut EP/Demo at Pat Enzor's home studio in Torrance, CA. Larry Sanchez played saxophone on Fake Kids, and Gabe helped out with the hand claps.

Rhea:

"I had to do all my vocals in a closet two rooms away from the studio, partially for acoustics, and partially because I hated people watching me sing"

Animal Mannequin continued to play shows all over the Los Angeles area.  Some time in the summer of 2005, the band fizzled out.  Their last two shows were acoustic sets, one of which was captured on tape and will be the subject of a future post.  Members went their separate ways, but the experience left its mark on them.

Jasmine:

"It’s funny going back and remembering all this. Animal Mannequin was one of the first bands I was in and I think it informed a lot of my involvement in music even to this day. Booking shows, playing shows, writing songs, the beginning of my love for Acoustic Bass Amps, Rhea pushing me to improve my parts and not play the same thing four times... In general, just having a higher level of involvement in music and the local punk community and really enjoying that."

Jeff:

"In general it was one of the funnest bands I ever played in, for sure. Good vibes" 

Rhea later played in the band Big Death and currently plays bass in Workshop with yours truly. Jasmine now lives in the SF Bay area and has played in Neo Cons, Neighborhood Brats, Fractures, and Girl-illa Biscuits. She currently plays in No Babies, tørsö, Everybody Row, Composite, and Anopheli. Pete continues "constantly sexing his drums"[Rhea] and has played in countless bands with everyone you know. Jeff has also played with The Imperial Way, Dios, Big Death, and Merry Christmas and currently drums in Joyce Manor. Special thanks to Christian for uploading the AM Demo to youtube!