Nicola Hitchcock and Saul Freeman compose the dream pop sounds of Mandalay. The duo has had moderate success throughout the ’90s in their native UK, specifically with the albums Empathy and Instinct. Mandalay now totes around a new deal with V2, for which they have released Solace.
Mandalay has been named one of Madonna’s favorite bands, but I’m not putting much stock in that without hearing the album.
So I listened. I liked it, but not without some pangs of boredom. “Not Seventeen” gets it started and is very paced. “Like Her” shows you the style that you’re going to get a lot of with Solace. It’s very slow, methodical. It does have some loveliness as “Beautiful” demonstrates.
I can see why Madonna likes Mandalay so much. “Flowers Bloom” sounds a lot like the material girl’s latest works. So who influenced who? I have no idea, but Madonna is much more crafty and knows how to stir up a sweeter pot. Mandalay has loveliness to spare, but they sacrifice a lot with boredom.
+ rae gun
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