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Following the advice of her mentor, Chuck E. Weiss, Eleni Mandell honed her art in the small clubs of LA, working as a waitress to support her music. She has been a musician in Los Angeles for more than a decade.
Her dedication has paid off. Her first album, "Wishbone" (Mr. Charles, 1998), is one of the cult classics of the '90s and continues to astonish neophytes. In 2000, Thrill (the inaugural release of Toronto's Zedtone label) reached a wider audience, drawing rave reviews in the U.S., Canada, Britain and Korea and full houses in most of the clubs she played. "Her latest self-produced album is called Thrill," wrote The New Yorker. "Talk about truth in advertising."
Her following albums, "Snakebite" (2002) and "Country for True Lovers" (2003), continued to attract rave reviews and ever increasing sales. Her albums have been licensed to companies in France, Germany, Britain, Australia and Korea. Her songs have been featured in film and television, including Brother and Sisters, Six Feet Under and the films Monkeybone, Heavy and Palmetto. She has toured North America and Europe constantly over the past years and in January, 2004, was part of a triumphant Tom Waits tribute (with John Hammond and the Tin Hat Trio) in New York. In June, 2003, she won the LA Weekly's songwriter of the year award, sharing the honour with Elliott Smith.
On her fifth album, "Afternoon", Eleni Mandell delivers her most polished collection of songs about women on the verge. It is certain to push her to the verge of greater success she so richly deserves.
During her 2005 tour, Eleni Mandell paid visits to Quebec and Ontario, while her version of Cole Porter's, "I Love Paris", for the Spicy Burger commercial (featuring Paris Hilton), was attracting more and more fans on her website. In 2006, she released an album entitled Sex, Fashion and Money with her side project The Grabs, with Steve Gregoropolous (from W.A.C.O & Lavender Diamond) on guitar, Nigel Harrison (Blondie) on bass and Elvira Gonzalez on drums (ex-silversun pickups).
The latest addition to Eleni Mandell's discography, "Miracle of Five" (Zedtone), was released in February 2007 and is still gathering rave reviews, being qualified as her most accomplished album.
Here, Eleni Mandell delivers a magnificent, late night, lights-low set - her sexiest recording yet. Her conversational alto is set beautifully against the reeds, (Jeff Turmes, who has backed James Harman and Badly Drawn Boy), guitar (Nels Cline of Wilco), vibes (DJ Bonebrake of X) and her longtime rhythm section of drummer Kevin Fitzgerald and bassist Ryan Feves. Produced by Andy Kaulkin (keyboadist for Merle Haggard and R.L. Burnside)and mixed by Rob Schnapf (Beck, Elliott Smith), the album is a sonic marvel. Her captivating songwriting has taken an optimistic turn, concentrating on love found instead of love lost. Already a local hero - Los Angeles magazine named Eleni best local singer and the LA Weekly anointed her as best songwriter - "Miracle of Five" will open the world to this timeless chanteuse.
In summer 2007, during her visit in Montreal for the International Jazz Festival, Eleni recorded a 7" single of two new French songs, released on Bonsound Records.
Jun 15, 2008
Hi Friends, it's been a really long time since I've bothered yammering away on myspace but Steve Gregoropoulos (my partner in The Grabs) and I just listened to the first Grabs record and I thought "th...
Feb 11, 2008
I'm in Montreal where it rained all day. Even so, I'm still having a great time and meeting great people. The most exciting thing that happened today was that I bumped into Billy Pitman. Billy use...
ROCKFAN21, May 10, 2009:
Salut ! ELENE , ta chanson: " Dis-Moi au revoir encore " est jolie.
Paix et L' Avenir Toujours !
LUIS *
Green, Apr 24, 2008:
Girls is a great song. Keep up the awesome music!
Opus Flume, Jan 27, 2008:
Lovely voice & nice band. I'm a fan.
Gagosian Liga, Jan 9, 2008:
"We all admire the spangled acrobat with classical grace meticulously walking his tight rope in the talcum light; but how much rarer art there is in the sagging rope expert wearing scarecrow clothes and impersonating a grotesque drunk! I should know." (Vladimir Nabokov)
Thank you for your friendship! Musical greetings from Munich/Germany!
Feel free to download my music!