Mandy, Indiana draw on the broad sonic palette of experimental noise music, and their sound arrives fully formed. The group initially came to fruition after Fourreau and Fair met sharing a bill with their former projects in the fertile Manchester scene, and was later completed with the addition of Simon Catling (synth) and Alex Macdougall (drums). Their first recordings emerged in 2019, culminating in 2021’s “…” EP which saw the band draw early cosigns from Daniel Avery, Squid, and Gilla Band, whose own Daniel Fox mixed several of the tracks on i’ve seen a way, alongside Robin Stewart of Giant Swan. Produced by Fair, the album boasts mastering credits from indie stalwart Heba Kadry.
Unlikely off-site recording locations with novel acoustics were crucial to achieving i’ve seen a way’s unique sound, from recording screaming vocals in a Bristol mall to live drums in a West Country cave. Other sessions happened in Gothic crypts, where Mandy, Indiana’s physical bass frequencies and experiments with volume competed with underground roadworks in upsetting a yoga class above. Fair elaborates: “These locations offered something acoustically, but would traditionally be thought of as having the ‘wrong’ characteristics for producing a ‘good’ recording. These spaces imprint on the sound: It’s not about a lack of access to more traditional recording spaces — it’s about us capturing things happening in a specific place at that moment.” i’ve seen a way is a manifesto for these moments of openness and disruption.