The members of Manel met while attending Costa i Llobera school in Barcelona.
Els millors professors europeus Els millors professors europeus (
The Best European Professors), whose title alludes to a lyric of the song
Pla quinquennal. The album, recorded at Estudis Nòmada 57 between June and October 2007 and produced by
Discmedi, was released the following year to critical acclaim. The Catalan magazine Enderrock pronounced it the best
pop-rock album of the year. In its issue of January 2009,
Rockdelux described it as the third best Spanish album of the previous year, while the magazine MondoSonoro rated it the seventh-best. The
video for
Dona estrangera, directed by Sergi Pérez, was awarded the prize for best video at the 2008
Cinemad festival. Apart from the songs featured on
Els millors professors europeus, the group's repertoire includes cover versions of ''No t'enyoro
by Els Pets, La Tortura by Shakira, and Common People'' by
Pulp. It wasn't long until Manel became a sociocultural phenomenon in the
Catalan-speaking world, giving rise to a considerable number of new Catalan-speaking pop groups, among whom, distinguished by the sales numbers they have achieved, are
Els amics de les arts.
Els millors professors europeus went
gold, selling more than 30 000 copies.
10 milles per veure una bona armadura Their second album, from which two songs (
Aniversari and
Boomerang) were released in February 2011, went on sale on 15 March 2011 titled
10 milles per veure una bona armadura. In ten days, it became the best-selling album in Spain. The title comes from a phrase pronounced by
Kenneth Branagh in
Much Ado about Nothing. In its first week, it sold more than 10,000 copies and reached number 1 on the CD sales chart in Spain, something which hadn't happened with a Catalan disc in more than 15 years. This second album was also released on vinyl.
''Atletes, baixin de l'escenari'' Manel's third studio album was ''
Atletes, baixin de l'escenari (in English, Athletes, get off the stage''), published by and distributed by
Warner Music in CD, vinyl and digitally. The album was released on 16 April 2013. In its first week, the album reached number one on
Promusicae billboards in Spain, selling more than 10,000 copies. The title refers to an incident at the
1992 Olympic Games where an announcer ordered a large number of dancing athletes to get off the stage as it was feared it would break.
Jo competeixo On 1 March 2016, Manel announced through a press release the release of a fourth studio album, titled
Jo competeixo, which was released on 8 April and consisted of eleven songs, recorded between November and December 2015.
Per la bona gent On 12 September 2019, Manel announced the publication of their fifth studio album, titled
Per la bona gent, which was released on 4 October and consisted of twelve songs. This work included collaborations with artists such as
Jaume Sisa and
María del Mar Bonet.
''L'amant malalta'' and indefinite hiatus On 11 March 2021, Manel released the single "L'amant malalta" ("The ill lover"). This was followed on 16 April by the release of a limited edition three-track EP, also titled ''L'amant malalta''. Two years later, in March 2023, Manel announced that they would be taking an indefinite break from performing together and that lead singer Guillem Gisbert would be pursuing solo projects. On 1 March 2024 he released the LP
Balla la Masurca!. == Members ==