"While working on their second album, two members of Mandy, Indiana-the Mancunian quartet fronted by a French valkyrie named Valentine Caulfield-were faced with their own corporeality. Drummer Alex Macdougall underwent surgery for a hernia and, after doctors found a lump, had half of his thyroid removed. Caulfield lost most of her vision in one eye. The 10-hour days that comprised the recording sessions could have broken them."
"Instead, the band's distinctive sound-an alloy of industrial, post-punk, and '80s neo-noir soundtracks-emerged titanium-plated and electrified. URGH is both headier and more visceral than anything Mandy, Indiana have made before. This isn't body music or brain music; it's spine music, homed in on the bony junction where mind meets matter. Listening to Mandy, Indiana's 2023 debut, i've seen a way, felt like wandering the darkrooms at Berghain-if Berghain blasted vintage French pirate radio broadcasts."
Two members of Mandy, Indiana endured serious health crises during the recording of their second album, including thyroid surgery and major vision loss. Grueling ten-hour sessions coincided with those challenges, yet the band forged a tougher, more electrified sound that blends industrial, post-punk, and '80s neo-noir soundtrack elements. URGH emerges as denser and more visceral than previous work, described as 'spine music' focused where mind meets matter. The album plunges listeners into a claustrophobic atmosphere of powerlessness, juxtaposing violent imagery and fractured vocals. Caulfield's lyrics examine power and interpersonal violation, and the lead single confronts sexual violence directly.
Read at Pitchfork
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