Mannequins for Friends at the Bottleneck

More room. More bass. An increasingly credible theory about friends.

FIELD NOTE // The Mannequins Were Still Pointing the Way
SUBJECT // Expanding habitat requirements and the discovery of friends
HABITAT // The Bottleneck
LOCATION // Lawrence, Kansas
DATE OBSERVED // September 4, 2026
SPECIMENS OBSERVED // Mannequins for Friends, The Absent, 12 Stones, and the humans gathered around the merch tables
FIELD CONDITIONS // Familiar noise. Encouraging costumes. Precarious scientific detachment.

FIELD OBSERVATIONS AND PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE COLLECTED BY Laverna the Rockin’ Raccoon
WRITTEN & PHOTOGRAPHED BY Alethea F. Mehdipour — Slightly Feral Media
PUBLISHED BY My Midlife Crisis Creative Inc.

THE MANNEQUIN TRAIL CONTINUES

The last time the raccoon followed the mannequin trail, she ended up at Soundbite Social with a camera, a fruit snack attached to her shoe, and considerably more interest in Mannequins for Friends than an inside joke could account for.
The history is documented in The Function of the Behavior.

It began with a mannequin at The Pitt in Frontenac. Specifically, it's hard nipples. Those had become an inside joke. Then Mannequins for Friends began appearing in the raccoon’s digital habitat. Curiosity did what curiosity does, and she went to investigate.

There was an actual band at the end of the trail. A heavy one. A distinctly basement-garage 1994 sort of band.

Further observation was warranted.

On September 4, the investigation continued at the Bottleneck in Lawrence, where the advertised bill brought together 12 Stones, The Absent, and Mannequins for Friends. The raccoon already had reasons to be interested.

Then a human walked by in a pig mask.

EXTREMELY ENCOURAGING FIELD CONDITIONS

Black platform boots. Leather skirt. Harness. Pig mask. The raccoon saw The Absent’s singer before the show and got giddy.

Oh. There were going to be THEATRICS.

The raccoon has a deep, abiding love for theatrical horror metal. The more theatrical, the better. This enthusiasm has a work history. Ice Nine Kills was her first all-day call as a stagehand. It was a two-day show, so her introduction became TWO all-day calls. It changed her forever. GWAR. Here Come the Mummies. Ninja Sex Party. Different musical creatures, but costumes and theatrics are a reliable route to raccoon happiness. She likes humans who commit to the proceedings. The platform boots and pig mask suggested a promising level of commitment.

No notes had been played yet. The raccoon was already delighted.

THE BASEMENT NEEDED MORE ROOM

Mannequins for Friends played first. They started, and the raccoon immediately reconsidered the dimensions of the first stage she had seen them on.
Too small. These humans needed more room.

They play BIG. They sound BIG.

They had brought that same basement-garage 1994 sound with them to the Bottleneck.

Just BIGGER.

She recognized what had caught her attention at Soundbite Social: the heaviness, the groove, that particular loose-edged sound with sludge in the seams. Here it was again, giving her an excellent reason to revise the habitat assessment. Apparently the basement required more square footage. The initial mannequin investigation had successfully located the band. This return visit was establishing the scale of the thing.

The raccoon had underestimated their space requirements.

THE PIG MASK HAD COMPETITION

Then The Absent took the stage in all their glory. The raccoon had already devoted considerable anticipatory enthusiasm to the singer’s clothing. She was prepared for the boots. The skirt. The harness. The pig mask.

And then the first thing she noticed was the bass.

WAIT.

A Stygian Bough bass? The raccoon looked closer. Five strings.
She remembered the Stygian Bough bass having six. Or seven. The precise number was temporarily unavailable, but her recollection involved MORE. Close. Either way, the raccoon approves of more bass.

This was becoming an attention-allocation problem. She had expected to watch the pig-masked human in platform boots. Now there were strings to count. Several of her interests had assembled on the same stage.

The Absent were everything she had hoped for. And more.

THE FRIENDS IN MANNEQUINS FOR FRIENDS

Before catching 12 Stones, the raccoon swung by the merch tables.
The girl offspring ended up with her shirt from The Absent. The raccoon collected her “payment”—a Mannequins for Friends T-shirt.

In the brief minutes she spent with the Mannequins for Friends tribe, she observed many, MANY reasons for fondness. Women supporting women. Friends supporting friends. Musicians supporting musicians.

One particularly self-controlled woman supporting her husband. The raccoon noticed.

She also began to understand how good the friends in Mannequins for Friends could be. Dave Mason is the band’s voice. He does the talking. And the singing.

The raccoon appreciated the room that could leave for humans who did not wish to speak. She understands that space. Some humans prefer it by personal choice, nature, or personality. Some use augmentative and alternative communication—AAC—as their voice. Nobody owed her an explanation of how they communicated.
She appreciated the kind of friend who made the accommodation.
Being welcome should not come with a conversational entrance exam.
Respecting someone’s nonverbal space is as important as respecting their personal space. Here, in these few minutes, she observed inclusion and acceptance. Humans making room for other humans to exist comfortably among them.

The band name was acquiring supporting evidence.

AN UNLIKELY NAVIGATION SYSTEM

The raccoon considered the route that had brought her to this particular group of humans.
An inside joke about a mannequin’s hard nipples. A band appearing in her feed. A show. Another show. Now a merch table, a shirt, and friends giving her reasons to understand the name a little differently.

Those nipples were still pointing the way. Apparently, toward friends.

The raccoon could not defend this as a navigation system but she was becoming fond of the results.

THE RACCOON HAS LEFT THE BUILDING

The raccoon caught some shots of 12 Stones, then headed home for the evening.

The camera held the latest evidence. Her Mannequins for Friends shirt had been collected. The girl offspring would have the shirt from The Absent.
The field notes required one final addition.
Mannequins for Friends needed more room onstage.
Their humans knew something about making room off it.

VIEW THE EVIDENCE

view the gallery here

CONDUCT YOUR OWN FIELD RESEARCH

The raccoon recommends collecting evidence with your own ears. Listen to the bands. Follow their activities. Acquire a shirt if appropriate. Be aware that offspring may acquire it afterward.

MANNEQUINS FOR FRIENDS

A Lawrence, Kansas, rock trio combining sonic heaviness with head-banging grooves. Begin with We Were Never Hereand “New House.” Allow sufficient room for the basement.

Instagram • Bandcamp • Band Links

THE ABSENT

Wichita, Kansas, nu-metal with a theatrical streak. Investigate “Dirty Little Piggy,” “The Gospel of Suffering,” and “Death Anxiety.” The pig mask has a musical history. Further examination is encouraged.

Instagram • Listen to “Death Anxiety” • “The Gospel of Suffering” Official Video

12 STONES

Formed in Mandeville, Louisiana, in 2000, 12 Stones bring a history of post-grunge and hard rock. Their catalog includes 12 Stones, Potter’s Field, and Anthem for the Underdog. There is considerably more evidence than one evening’s photographs can contain.

Official Website • Facebook • Bandcamp

I couldn’t verify a homepage or Bandcamp for Wichita’s The Absent, so I used their music-release link and official video.

FIELD NOTE COMPLETE

The room left evidence. The raccoon collected it.

Slightly Feral. Entirely Capable.

— Laverna the Rockin’ Raccoon 🦝🖤

Slightly Feral Media

THE HUMAN // ALETHEA MEHDIPOUR

📷 Barefoot Lifestyle Photography

This is Alethea—the photographer, stagehand, behavior scientist, and designated human attached to this operation.

She documents the people, rituals, machinery, and beautiful disorder of live culture. She carries the camera, follows the evidence, and keeps wandering into places most humans never think to look.

The raccoon provides responsible supervision.

Obviously.

Written and photographed by Alethea F. Mehdipour — Slightly Feral Media Published by My Midlife Crisis Creative Inc. All photographs and written content are protected by copyright. Please do not download, reproduce, alter, or redistribute images without permission. Bands and performers may contact Slightly Feral Media regarding personal and promotional use with proper photographer credit.

REFERENCES

FIRSTHAND REPORTING

Concert observations, personal stagehand history, merch-table encounters, and photography supplied by Alethea F. Mehdipour. Laverna’s imaginative interpretations belong to the storytelling.

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FIELD NOTE//Mannequins for Friends, The Absent & 12 Stones at The Bottleneck | Lawrence, KS