Manitu

Mannalia

MANNALIA believes that:"Voice is less for talking than for singing and healing".Her compassionately mind opening, challenging and definitely engaged lyrics are well served by an undeniable talent for original and catchy melodies. With both Tuareg and Celtic blood in her veins, it's no wonder she has always been a traveler, enjoying meeting all kinds of people, sharing their culture, living in different countries and feeling at home everywhere. For her, music is not a matter of fashion; it's a passion she's been feeding since age 14 as she started performing live in Europe with her band, playing bass and singing. After living in London and graduating with a master in English from a French University, she finally packs her bag and flies to Los Angeles to pursue her dream and musical path in the US. Despite the challenging struggle of having to adapt to a foreign country where she doesn't know anybody, she soon starts playing the clubs in the LA area with different bands before touring the rock clubs all over the country with her California based band, while honing her style and vision as an artist. In LA she will eventually learn a bunch from famous artists such as Tim Bogert (Vanilla Fudge, Jeff Beck…) Vocal coaches Chuck Plaisance and Jami Lula. After a year on tour, singing almost every night, she takes a long break in South Dakota where she meets with the Oglala Lakota Indians of the Pine Ridge reservation and is adopted by the family of a medicine man. There, with "The poorest people in the richest country" she lives the most enriching and enlightening days of her life before hitting the road again, more than ever determined to use her art as a weapon of peace. Mannalia is a fierce defender of peace, culture, education, tolerance and most of all, justice and Native Peoples' rights. She likes to share her vision of life, and writes about it freely.

David

DAVID'S wide experience in the field of sound, production, arranging and songwriting as well as his creative guitar playing and positive human qualities make him the pillar of the band. His music career starts at age 7 when he finally gets his first guitar, convincing his parents that piano lessons are definitely a waste of their money and of his time. Once the six-string daunted, he puts his first band together and starts playing live. He quickly becomes one of the most sought after guitarists in the area and plays with many rock bands all over Europe. For him though, guitar expertise is not an end. His restless creative mind sees no point in becoming a guitar hero; he loves writing, arranging, experimenting sounds and original ideas. He decides to study sound and recording and becomes a professional sound engineer and a prolific producer, this leading him to work in various settings for many local bands as well as top international artists such as Yo la Tengo, Gold Frap, Nada surf, Yes, Montreux Festival…

Lionel

His stunning performance the day he auditioned for Manitu left no doubt to the rest of the band that he was The one. "He plugged in, didn't talk much and played right away with the right intent and an incredibly serene self-confidence". Lionel is 11 when, after hearing the band Kiss on the radio for the first time, he decides he is going to be a musician. At 12 he puts his first rock-band together with a bunch of schoolmates. They play on self-made cardboard guitars and empty barrels of laundry soap drum-set. They tour the birthday parties in the neighborhood, playing over their favorite records pretending to be rock-stars. Later on though, he starts playing real drums on a friend's drum-set that he is considering buying from him. But his parents put a veto on the transaction. "Way too noisy, son! No Way!!!" they say. Nevertheless Lionel keeps practicing on his buddy's drum-set for 2 years at their rehearsal place and begins performing with his band anyway. In the meantime though, he develops a real passion for what is going to become his favorite instrument: bass-guitar, to which he will remain forever faithful. From then on, Lionel played bass in many pop-rock, cross over metal-funk, rock-prog, and symphonic-rock bands. He is credited on several CD albums and toured in Switzerland, France, Germany,…

Diego

When Watching Diego play, one can wonder if it’s him playing drums or the drums playing Diego…These 2 are one. They both seem to be an extension of each other and THAT is a fascinating experience. At the age of 10, while little boys usually spend their time puling little girls’ hair or throwing rocks at windows in the neighborhood, Diego doesn’t just do that. He also attends drumming lessons, applying his teacher’s instructions with passion and determination. After his first professional audition at 18, it’s on the road with various bands that he will hone his skill and technique. His unique skin bashing style, precision and energy will soon be noticed by big-name rock bands with whom he will eventually tour the US. Diego also collaborated in arranging many Prog Metal, Hard Rock or Pop Rock albums in the US as well as in Europe. He has a real talent for listening, understanding, catching the intention of the music and feeding it what it needs to be brought to a higher level. More recently he founded in Switzerland the very original and percussive band BPM. His precision, his uncommon energy and hard driving beat bring to Manitu’ s music the color and light that the band was looking for. Moreover, his humor and personality complete perfectly the « Manitu Family » spirit.

the all story

Nothing really seemed to pre-destine these 4 musicians to cross path and work together until Mannalia, after fronting several rock bands for more than 7 years in the US and working with famous artists in LA, came back to Europe to work on her own material, in laidback southern France. In Paris, she heard about guitarist/songwriter David Grillon from Switzerland and she decided to give it a shot. Their association soon resulted in a rich repertoire of original rock songs, with strong melodies and mind-opening lyrics. From then on, Mannalia decided to move to Switzerland to dedicate her energy to this new ambitious project. The team will later be completed with bassist Lionel Ebi and primary drummer Vince Villard and it will be called Manitu: A land no man has ever stepped on, pure and sacred. Working together for 2 years, the band has polished a solid repertoire and live-show that immediately generated vivid interest from a fast growing fan base and was booked on various prestigious rock festivals. Meanwhile, a 4 songs maxi cd was released. As off summer 2005, Manitu definitely took a new and stronger turn, hiring drummer Diego Rapacchietti whom with they have recorded their debut album: “Clear & Simple” a gem carved in rock that is released May, 2007.

Come and check out the new CD!

13 songs of pure rock!

Guaranteed 100% Autotune FREE and Beat Detector FREE

Manitu emerges in European Press Reviews as: “ a different kind of band”, a band that “ … has this spark that makes the difference ”. Fronted by female singer-songwriter Mannalia, the band’s melodic power-rock is a hot blend of powerful and sensual vocal, solid rhythm, creative guitars, rich melodies with a strong message. This cocktail’s most reported side effect is: triggering of something new and yet intimately familiar deep inside of you.