Pin Me Down

Bloc Party's Russell Lissack teamed up with American vocalist Milena Mepris in 2004 to form Pin Me Down, a needling, gutsy, dancefloor-friendly indie rock project that nodded to acts like Ladyhawke, Bella, the Long Blondes, and (unsurprisingly) Bloc Party. The duo derived its name from a text message Lissack sent to Mepris in the early days of their collaboration. Mepris was trying to get ahold of Lissack, who at that point was getting ready to play a gig with Bloc Party; he wasn't able to answer his phone, so he sent her a message stating, "Pin me down at 7." The duo's debut single, "Cryptic," was released on Kitsune Maison 5 Golden Edition in early 2008.