The Kingsbury Manx is an American

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

group from

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

, United States.

History

The original members of The Kingsbury Manx met in middle school. They then attended different colleges and reunited during the summer months to play and record together. One of their demos caught the ear of Chicago-based label

Overcoat Recordings Overcoat Recordings is an American record label specializing in alt country and indie rock music. It is based in Chicago, Illinois, and its owner is Howard Greynolds, who was formerly an employee of Thrill Jockey. Kingsbury Manxat Allmusic.com Arti ...

, who issued their debut self-titled album in 2000. Despite little promotional effort from the label, the album became a cult success, including recognition in UK music magazine ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' 's Top 50 of 2000. A second LP (''Let You Down'') followed in 2001 and a third album and EP (''Aztec Discipline'' and ''Afternoon Owls'') in 2003. The band has toured with many indie bands of note including

The Sea and Cake The Sea and Cake is an American indie rock band with a jazz influence, based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The group formed in the mid-1990s from members of The Coctails (Archer Prewitt), Shrimp Boat (Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge), an ...

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Calexico Calexico () is a city in southern Imperial County, California. Situated on the Mexican border, it is linked economically with the much larger city of Mexicali, the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California. It is about east of San Diego ...

Stephen Malkmus Stephen Joseph Malkmus (born May 30, 1966) is an American musician best known as the primary songwriter, lead singer and guitarist of the indie rock band Pavement. He currently performs with Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks and as a solo artist ...

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Bonnie "Prince" Billy Joseph Will Oldham (born January 15, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. From 1993 to 1997, he performed and recorded in collaboration with dozens of other musicians under variations of Palace (Palace, Palace Flophouse, Palace Br ...

, and

Brightblack Morning Light Brightblack Morning Light is a musical group formed in Northern California by guitarist Nathan Shineywater and pianist Rachael Hughes, both of whom are from Alabama. The band has been "linked to a spirit of folky 1960's revivalism," and they were ...

. Over the last few years, there have been a couple lineup changes with original members Kenneth Stephenson and Scott Myers leaving while adding Clarque Blomquist and Paul Finn. In 2005, the group split with Overcoat and signed to

Yep Roc Yep Roc Records is an American independent record label based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and owned by Redeye Distribution. Since 1997, the label has released albums from North Carolina and international artists, including Nick Lowe, Paul W ...

, who released ''The Fast Rise and Fall of the South''. The album was mixed by

Wilco Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently dur ...

Mikael Jorgensen Mikael Jorgensen (born June 4, 1972) is an American musician known as the pianist and keyboardist for the band Wilco as well as a member of the bands Pronto and Quindar. Career Prior to his days in Chicago and with Wilco, Mikael honed his musical ...

. The band are currently on Odessa Records and released their fifth album ''Ascenseur Ouvert!'' on April 21, 2009, followed by a sixth, ''The Bronze Age'' on 5 March 2013.

Members

;Current *Bill Taylor (guitar/vocals/various) *Ryan Richardson (drums/vocals/bass/various) *Clarque Blomquist (bass/drums/various/vocals) *Paul Finn (keys/vocals/various) ;Former *Kenneth Stephenson (guitar/vocals) *Scott Myers (bass/keyboards)

Discography

*''The Kingsbury Manx'' (

, 2000) *''Let You Down'' (Overcoat, 2001) *''Afternoon Owls EP'' (Overcoat, 2003) *''Aztec Discipline'' (Overcoat, 2003) *''The Fast Rise and Fall of the South'' (

, 2005) *''Ascenseur Ouvert!'' (Odessa, 2009) *''The Bronze Age'' (Odessa, 2013)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kingsbury Manx American folk rock groups Indie rock musical groups from North Carolina Musical groups from Chapel Hill-Carrboro, North Carolina Musical groups established in 1999 Yep Roc Records artists 1999 establishments in North Carolina