The Paranoid Style

The Paranoid Style is a sprawling garage-punk-pop outfit built around singer and songwriter Elizabeth Nelson, who counts the T. Rex, the Mekons, and Elvis Costello among her influences. Her articulate vocal delivery is fitting for a band named after historian Richard J. Hofstadter’s 1964 essay “The Paranoid Style in American Politics.” Nelson and her husband Timothy Bracy of the Mendoza Line lead a fluctuating lineup, sometimes numbering over a dozen players. Formed in Washington, D.C. in 2012, the Paranoid Style were soon invited to sign with Bar/None Records, which released the EP The Purposes of Music in General in 2013. Later that year, Misra released the EP on cassette alongside another EP, The Power of Our Proven System. A third EP, Rock & Roll Just Can’t Recall, followed in 2015. The band’s full-length debut, Rolling Disclosure, arrived on Bar/None in the summer of 2016 and included a cover of Wreckless Eric’s “Duvet Fever.” ~ Marcy Donelson