Mandalay

Mandalay常被拿来和Cocteau Twins比较，并不是因为他们音乐上的相似性，而是源于Saul Freeman（乐队1/2，前Thieves乐器手）在《Melody Maker》上登的一则广告，寻找一位具有Elizabeth Fraser（Cocteau Twins）和Shara Nelson（Massive Attack）声音的主唱，而Nicola Hitchcock也并不与以上两位在声音上有怎样的相似性（或许会联想起M.A.时的Liz，但不是CT），她有自己带着冰冷氛围感的、近乎脆弱极限的优雅声线，而Mandalay仍然以它独特的气质延续着早被预言终结的trip-hop潮流。Madonna甚至在2000年秋说Mandalay是她的‘new favorite band’，这无疑给乐队极大地提高了知名度

Ex-Thieves instrumentalist Saul Freeman aimed for his own dream-pop aesthetic when he placed an ad in the now defunct music weekly, Melody Maker. He had already worked with David McAlmont, but wanted his own creative outlet. Searching for an ethereal voice similar to the likes of the Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser and Shara Nelson (Massive Attack, Presence), solo artist Nicola Hitchcock ended Freeman's search when answering his request. The two instantly clicked, for Hitchcock also had a debut album under her belt and the two formed Mandalay in the mid-nineties. Incorporating trip-hop loops similar to Portishead and Hitchcock's vocal perfections, the duo earned props throughout the latter part of the decade in their native U.K., specifically with the albums Empathy and Instinct. Madonna even called Mandalay her new favorite band in fall 2000. Mandalay had signed to V2 by mid-2000 and prepped for their stateside major-label release, Solace, in spring 2001.