"..not actually from the Isle of Man, but so far out of the loop they might as well be..." NME
The Kingsbury Manx are a mysterious quartet from Chapel Hill, North Carolina consisting of Kenneth Stephenson (guitar, vocals), Bill Taylor (guitar, vocals), Scott Myers (bass, keyboards, cover painting), and Ryan Richardson (drums, vocals). Named after "an American folk tale" (according to the band), they released their debut LP - The Kingsbury Manx - on Overcoat (City Slang in Europe) in 1999.
The Kingsbury Manx is a beautiful album - quiet and melancholy - sounding in places like Simon and Garfunkel, the Byrds and even the Beach Boys. The artwork was willfully obscure; crediting nobody but the engineer and the cover artist it led many critics to believe it was the anonymous work of an established group. It was well recieved by the music press and reached the NME's Top 50 Albumns 2000. The Kingsbury Manx was followed in 2001 by Let You Down, released on the same labels.
The band seem unwilling to disclose much of their past. It appears that they have known each other for many years, attending the same school. After attending college they all returned home and started recording together.