biographical info
It was winter 1998 when the original line-up of the Winnipeg band The Mandarins was formed from the ashes of singer/songwriter Tanya Jonasson's (formerly Tanya Zubert) previous project, Swim. The band only stayed together for 2 years, but did manage to put out a popular split 7-inch record with fellow Winnipeg band Transonic on Portobello Records.
Taking their name from the title of a Simone de Beauvoir novel, The Mandarins then picked up where Swim left off. They released the independently recorded Shiver EP in 2000, and found themselves in the top 10 of the Canadian Campus Radio Charts across the country in 2001, maintaining the #1 position at UMFM & CKUW for several weeks. The Mandarins were also named UMFM's "Band of the Month" in January 2001.
The Mandarins of today now features Tanya Jonasson (The Paperbacks, Swim) on vocals, guitar & keyboards, Keli Martin (The Details, Sixty Stories) on bass & vocals, Louis Levesque-Cote (The Paperbacks, Red Eyed Morning) on guitar & vocals, and Matthew Lazowski (The Lollies) on drums and percussion.
The Mandarins have finished recording a professionally produced full-length album with Cam Loeppky at Prairie Recording Studio. Release details coming soon!
lineup
Tanya Jonasson Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Keli Martin Bass
Louis Levesque-Cote Guitar
Matthew Lazowski Drums