Santa Mandra is a band formed by five young musicians from La Garrotxa (Àlex Espuña, guitar and vocals; Marçal Bancells, guitar and vocals; Adrià Batlle, synthesizers and vocals; Sara Oliver, drums; and David Vila, bass). The group was born from the need to share their own original music, a blend of alternative rock, pop, and electronic sounds mixed with funk, drum & bass, and even folk. It’s a project that champions and promotes live music in Catalan as a core value.
“El cap a la Lluna” (2023) is Santa Mandra’s debut album. It reflects the fears, insecurities, thoughts, and dreams of the band’s two singers and co-writers, Àlex Espuña and Marçal Bancells — emotions that become more intense as young people leave adolescence and approach adulthood.
This first album was self-produced by Santa Mandra, recorded and mixed at Joki Records (Sant Climent de Sescebes) by Joan Rota from Manlleu, electronically produced by Joan Borràs (Oques Grasses), and mastered by Marc Usano. It already has over 250,000 streams on digital platforms.
In January 2024, Santa Mandra released three new singles: “Per fi l’amor no és una merda”, “Una bomba al teu iot”, and a rock version of Manel’s pop song “Benvolgut”.
The three singles were very well received by the public, leading the band to perform at several festivals in the region such as Strenes (Girona), Intrèpid (Riudellots), and Portalblau (L’Escala), as well as at local town festivals across the province of Girona — including Pals, Castelló d’Empúries, Banyoles, and Sant Pau de Segúries, among others.
In 2025, the Garrotxa-based band returns with a new project titled “Fins que porti bastó”, set to be released in October, followed by an autumn tour across venues in Girona, Barcelona, Mataró, and other parts of Catalonia. This album aims to take Santa Mandra’s sound to the next level, exploring the fusion of rock with other genres in greater depth. While keeping their distinctly rock identity, the group experiments with new sonic landscapes: from traditional folk featuring the sac de gemecs in “No tinc respostes”, to the playful funk pop of “El pitjor que podia passar”, the intense electronic pulse of dubstep in “Una bomba al teu iot”, and the synth-rock ballad “Quan es fa fosc”. The result is a more mature album, with lyrics that are deeper and more socially engaged than those in El cap a la Lluna, while still maintaining the vibrant energy and youthful spirit that define the Garrotxa quintet.