Mancie has progressed through several forms, first coming into being when singer/guitarist Andrea Montgomery was in high school and now solidifying into a rock trio who conveys both passion and expertise in the music they create. Andrea, inspired by her older sister’s band and later musicians like PJ Harvey, Nirvana and The Pretenders, studied guitar and honed her craft at an early age. Her early version of Mancie, then in Boston, was nearly signed to a five-album record deal after only one show during high school and received lots of media attention, including the front page of the Boston Globe’s arts section.

Mancie, in its current inception, took shape when Andrea met Mark Feldman in a practice space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in early 2009. The two musicians immediately found common ground, in music and in life, and Mancie naturally evolved into the trio it is today, refining the sound Andrea’s been working on for years and allowing Mark's artistic sensibilities to infuse the songs with greater power and depth.

“I responded to Andrea’s way of playing guitar,” Mark says. “She plays from this really heavy, distorted, masculine place. Something about it connected with me. We had a real meeting of the minds. We just see things eye to eye.”

That connection resulted in a four-song, self-titled EP, which Mancie released in January of 2010 and the recent SAY SAY EP released in November 2010. These discs, which the band gives away for free, offers a glimpse of the group’s cohesive, emotionally-driven rock sound, sort of like if the Yeah Yeah Yeahs played AC/DC and Nirvana The music is immediate and engaging, beckoning the listener in and building a wall of sound around them.

The raw power of Mancie’s music is most apparent at their shows, all of which they book themselves. Frustrated with playing shows that didn’t generate a response, the band took matters into their own hands and formed Mancie Music Presents to book and promote their own gigs around New York. That take-charge attitude has landed them two residencies at Arlene’s Grocery and shows all over Manhattan and Brooklyn in venues like Public Assembly, Matchless and CBGB’s. The band’s energized stage dynamic has drawn in slews of new fans, all of whom have been awed the amount of sound three people can generate.

“When you come to our shows you’re going to have a good time,” Andrea says. “You’re going to feel like you’re part of the show. We like to have a good time and not be elitist. I want everyone to be part of the party. It’s just rock ‘n’ roll. It’s not too cool for school. We work really hard and practice a lot because we care about being good.”