Artist description The Fly Seville is the newest constellation of shining stars on Dambuilder Eric Masunaga's Sealed Fate record label. Four-piece, mid tempo rock featuring violin and keys that will make the toughest tough guy consider the lillies.

Music Style pop, rock, indie, twee

Musical Influences beatles

Similar Artists Galaxie 500, Luna, Versus, Push Kings, Dambuilders, Television, Ride

Artist History Boston by-way-of-Providence indie band The Fly Seville has been making waves ever since the release of their first full length record entitled 'Carousel' in early 1999.The record was produced and recorded by former Dambuilder Eric Masunaga, whose producing credits can also be found on albums by Sebadoh, Mary Timony, Ash Bowie, Helium, and the Dambuilders among others.The Fly Seville began as a solo project and subsequently a demo tape that singer / guitarist Jesse Blatz recorded in a friend's basement with a bassist and drummer. The project soon became a band featuring Blatz and demo bassist Colin Rhinesmith.Soon after, violin / keyboard player, Stacy Joy joined the group and after Several different rhythm section configurations, The Fly Seville has stabalized their line-up to include boston post-punk stalwart Jason Carlin on bass and vocals and drummer Jason Sloan whose other credits include Heavy Stud and the Bret Rosenburg Problem.Thew Fly Seville will release their second full length album entitled "Falling In Love With The Fly Seville" on Sealed Fate Records on Valentine's Day, 2001 and will begin their second full national tour to support it in April.

Group Members Jesse Blatz- vocals, guitars; | Stacy Joy- violin, keys; | Jason Carlin- bass, vocals | Jason Sloan- drums, percussion

Instruments vocals, guitars, bass, violin, drums, keys (synth, rhodes), percussion.

Albums Carousel (Sealed Fate, 1999), Falling In Love... (Sealed Fate 2001)

Press Reviews KICKBRIGHT MAGAZINE: Impressive. That's pretty much sums up my opinion of The Fly Seville's first full length album. I thought their self-released tapes were pretty good but after listening to 'Carousel' I think they've come into their own. This is *good* stuff. They settled into a wonderful laid back indie-rock sense with the right amount of pop. Jesse Blatzs' vocals are a downright perfect mix of somberness and sexiness. The early tapes may be a little hard to find now but luckily they rerecorded several of those songs. "Lemonseed" takes on a whole new dimension with the added extended slow groove jam called "The Second Half." God, it's so slick! Colin Rhinesmith tears it up on bass. I also loved "Unspeakable Things." If there were more bands making music like this I would be a happy boy. I hope someone out there in readerville picks up this album. It's a winner.INDIE-MUSIC.COM Guitars shimmer, violins soar, keyboards and bass swell, and then the vocals kick in. Ahhh.... those vocals... The debut album, Carousel, from Boston/Providence, R.I. exports, The Fly Seville, is one of those rare treats of discovery that feels just like opening up presents on a crisp Christmas morning. This disc is a beautifully crafted mine of pop gems that assault the senses and leave the ears dripping with fluid melody. Produced by Eric Masunaga (ex-Dambuilders and extensive indie pop production cred) for Sealed Fate Records, Carousel nails down a perfect form of mellow pop with gloriously romanticized, charming vocals by frontman Jesse Blatz which calls to mind artists such as Morissey, Gene, and the underrated Fountains of Wayne. The band, as a whole, plays with a laid-back, unobtrusive style that accentuates the arrangements of lyrics and melody, rather than detracting from the delicious buildup that comes with patience in music-making. The thing that’s so difficult to describe here is the nearly religious devotion that this quartet has displayed in allowing the songs to develop at the pace they were intended to unfold at. So many bands start out with that intention, because you can hear it in their words, but pace becomes hurried when other hands are fine-tuning the process– that’s what makes Masunaga’s influence in the making of Carousel such a crucial element. It’s this patience that sets The Fly Seville apart. And those stunning, and frankly, hypnotizing vocals. Even as I enjoy putting this disc on repeat and listening to the whole thing over and over and finding new quirks with each spin, there is one track, in particular, that rises like a phoenix over the ashes of your typical pop wasteland. “The Taj Mahal of America” is an interesting and prime example of poignant songwriting that manages to surpass even its own moody undertones and delivers an arrestingly beautiful track in the process.The instrumentation is sparse, but lush when it mixes with the soaring, pleading vocals of Blatz. “Taj Mahal” is full of clean lines and a striking sense of heartfelt modesty – this is not overdone, but a fully realized song in every capacity. “If I say I’m uninspired I’m lying to you/trying to prove I’m not afraid to be the Taj Mahal of your America” doesn’t break down doors musically, but it’s suggestive of the bigger and bolder themes that seem to converge in the core of this tune. The Fly Seville could be the genius in our midst that goes unnoticed and unheralded, but with this brand of enchanting and inspiring moody pop, it’s my guess they won’t go un-championed for too much longer. Sincerity and heart-on-sleeve themes belie the true perfectness that encompasses this disc. I could go on and on and on about the different aspects that make this an ultimately listenable and essential release to include in CD collections across the globe, but the short version is this....Carousel is just too damn good for words.

Additional Info Travel Diary tour single (self release, 2000), Viva Noel comp (QDivision, 1999), other comps...

Location Boston, MA - USA

Copyright notice. All material on MP3.com is protected by copyright law and by international treaties. You may download this material and make reasonable number of copies of this material only for your own personal use. You may not otherwise reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, publicly display, or create derivative works of this material, unless authorized by the appropriate copyright owner(s).