Spooky Mansion

Four piece, San Francisco based Spooky Mansion is the quintessential example of “Guys Being Dudes.” They have a lax approach to their appearance– press photos show the boys a bit disheveled, like they just woke up from a run in with either a six pack of Rolling Rock or a night of tequila. Their Facebook about reads, “Unparalleled music made for banging and hanging with chicks and dudes.” But that’s why Spooky Mansion is so lovable– their carefree style makes you want to join their bandwagon (literally) of staying loose, maybe even shouting a “Cowabunga” or two.

This time around, the dudes present us with “Disco Bitch,” a surf grunge approach to the pre-game. Bump it before you hit the bar, or the sand dunes– it’s a multi-faceted track with potential for most pre-departures. Frontman Grayson Converse’s vocals have a come-hither quality to them, luring us into the band’s ethereal landscape. “Disco Bitch” has a cool layer of synth, met with smooth guitars and head-nod producing drums. Regarding the track, Converse added, “Sure, we’re typically Rock n Roll Bitch, but we needed to make these people dance – so we strapped on our space boots and laid that Disco beat down. So freak out.” - Impose Magazine

Spooky Mansion are a quartet living the dream in San Francisco. They rehearse nights at an abandoned surf shop and record during the day in their garage.

“Gone Too Far” begins with an easy-flowing surf rock guitar riff, before giving way to vocals strikingly similar to the approach/tone of Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox: raspy, sweeping, and invitingly fuzzy. Acute vocal tensions lead to forceful percussion that accompanies sweet psychedelic guitar melodies and delicately layered, soothing backing vocals. With a final burst of vocals and a smooth gliding guitar riff, the track abruptly ends, finalizing a very impressive effort. In the group’s own words, the track is “a dark and creepy exploration of what strange corners a person will visit when they’re alone in an expensive hotel room with two sexually ambiguous partners and infinity-rum.” Off their first EP, released about a month ago, it’s an excitingly solid showing from a group with plenty of potential. - Obscure Sound

Spooky Mansion and friends are about to rock your January. After a solid month of holiday-themed parties, it's time to get back to our old selves and get weird with some cool local bands, and our Bae of the Week, Spooky Mansion, will be on hand to help you do just that. In celebration of their upcoming EP, the first release from new San Francisco label Wave Dweller, Spooky Mansion will kick off a month-long residency at Amnesia on January 8th as well as appearing at Make-Out Room later in the month. A rotating cast of bands will be by their side throughout January, including former Bae of the Week Hot Flash Heat Wave, as well as O and Talk of Shamans. In addition, DotheBay will be in the house, co-presenting the show at Amnesia this Friday, and you can win tickets!

Like a sexy nighttime beach party, Spooky Mansion creates a sultry type of surf rock with all the traditional jangles, but with a layer of dark intricacy that makes their sound unique in an ocean of garage-rock groups. We spoke with frontman Grayson Converse about Spooky Mansion (it involves a lot of LSD), granny dragon witches (surprisingly unrelated to said LSD), and life in San Francisco. So read on, check out the official video for their single "Feel That Blood" and check out the DoTheBay exclusive premiere of their full EP! And don't forget to click to win tickets to their upcoming show, co-presented by your friends at DotheBay! - Do The Bay

On Spooky Mansion's latest, they've taken a step away from the sunny surf rock sounds for their latest EP, I'm the Moon, You're the Wave (so plz change w/ me). You'll still get plenty of lead singer Grayson Converse's impassioned wails, but they added elements such as heavy bass and drum samples that give them a completely new feel.

The unique vibe for I'm the Moon, You're the Wave, began with "Night Owl", a song that Converse says was just an instrumental with a chorus. He explains, "...when my friend Rose Droll laid down rap verses on it I was like, 'oh yah, thats a thing you can do'." "You're the Wave" was Converse trying to create an "atmospheric pop song", while "I'm the Moon" was a specific attempt at writing a jazz-influenced hip-hop song. "There is something to be said for intentionally trying to write in a different genre," says Converse. "it makes you think differently and can result in some exciting new ideas and sounds." I like the different thinking (and results), and I think you will too. You can purchase a cassette version of I'm the Moon, You're the Wave (so plz change w/ me) via Gaylord's Party Music, or pick it up at their release show Saturday night at Amnesia.

Joining Spooky Mansion at their release show will be Portland's Roselit Bone and Oakland's The Saxophones . Gaylord's Party Music is also collaborating with Friendship Fever to release Party and Friendship - a zine and limited-edition cassette, both of which feature the bands on the bill. Go with full pockets and come home with ears full of music and arms full of goodies - The Bay Bridged

San Francisco’s very own Spooky Mansion have just released a new song and its bound make your jaw drop, or possibly even lock once you discover just what was behind the writing of this track and, indeed, quite a few others!

Releasing their debut EP back in January the surfy soulsters are back with latest track ‘Mrs John’ which will feature to the Oakland-based OIM Records’ new compilation. When discussing the motivations behind his songwriting, singer/guitarist Grayson Converse explained how:

“A long time ago, I had one of my wisdom teeth taken out and they gave me a lot of painkillers. I was on these painkillers for like a week, and I just started recording and writing songs. I was so relaxed! I wrote fucking 15 songs! So I got my next wisdom tooth out and like a formula, I went back down and wrote another 15 songs. I’ve got two more – I’m waiting for the next album!”

‘Mrs. John’ was born out of those wisdom teeth sessions and recorded at Skyline Studios in Oakland’s Temescal neighborhood by Jeff Saltzman (who also produced Hot Fuss by The Killers), the track discusses gender identity in an unusual, but very interesting way as Converse has also explained:

“Basically, this guy has a girlfriend down in L.A. and they’ve been apart. He’s been experimenting with his thoughts thinking, ‘Wow, I really like the feel of pantyhose. I really like the look of a dress. That lipstick looks nice.’ He goes down to visit his girlfriend one weekend and she’s gone to work. He says, ‘Fuck it, I’m just going to try on some stuff. I’ve got the day to myself.’ He puts on lipstick and eyeliner and a dress. The roommate comes home and catches him. That’s the Mrs. John part – she comes home and she’s like, ‘What the fuck is going on? Are you gay?’ He’s like, ‘I don’t know. I don’t think so. I like you!’ It’s this conflict of ‘I like you, but if you can’t dig me in a dress, then this isn’t going to work out.’ “

The LP Blog has previously featured Spooky Mansions ‘Gone Too Far’ which also tackles the topic of changing gender, especially in terms of fashion, with a band member cross-dressing in a vintage frock and pantyhos! Never a dull moment eh!

‘Mrs Jones’ is a bright sunshiny track packed full of upbeat swirling surfy guitar riffs, bouncy rocky beats and Spooky Mansion’s very own distinct sound which isn’t hard to distinguish with Grayson’s vocals. I look forward to hearing lots more so lets hope the teeth extractions keep coming! Listen above. - The Listening Post