Flyleaf

Members: Lacey Mosley, Sameer Bhattacharya, Jared Hartmann, Pat Seals, James Culpepper

Active: 2000 - present

Flyleaf is a rock band from Temple, Texas. The band and its members have played under several names including Listen, Sporos, The Grove, Passerby and the current Flyleaf. They became the most prominent in Texas under Passerby, but due to legalities, the name was changed to Flyleaf after they were signed. "A flyleaf is the blank page at the front of a book," explains Lacey Mosley, Flyleaf's vocalist. "It's the dedication page, the place you write a message to someone you're giving a book to. And, that's kind of what our songs are -- personal messages that provide a few moments of clarity before the story begins."

HISTORY

Six years ago, vocalist Lacey Mosley began playing music with drummer James Culpepper. Later on guitar, Jared Hartmann and Sameer Bhattacharya were recruited. "Sameer and Jared are really experimental with melodies and pedals, and we all had different influences that were all blending together with the same passionate and hopeful heart, and that brought out this beautiful feeling. It was magical," said Mosley. Bassist Pat Seals joined in 2002 after leaving his previous band The Grove.

As Passerby, the band released three EPs, and played over 100 shows in Texas alone over the span of two years under the booking and promotion company Runt Entertainment. One of those shows was played with Evanescence at the Engine Room in Houston on March 4, 2004. At that time, the crowd of 800 people was the largest crowd that Passerby had ever played for, and they sold all 150 of their EPs.

In 2003, Passerby played a showcase for the president of RCA in New York City in hopes of getting signed. RCA turned the band down, but the president of Octone Records, who had been secretly invited to the showcase, was very interested in the band. They waited for a few days at a truck stop in their van for a phone call about an Octone showcase. Upon playing the showcase, they were signed and on January 7, 2004, Octone Records' website announced their arrival to the label.

In March of 2004, Flyleaf were shipped off to Seattle, Washington to record an EP with Rick Parasher (Pearl Jam, Blind Melon). Afterwards, they began touring with the likes of Breaking Benjamin, Saliva, Trust Company, Staind and 3 Doors Down to support their self-titled EP. In October, the EP which had previously been available only at live shows, was released to stores.

In the beginning months of 2005, the band began recording their first full length album with Howard Benson (My Chemical Romance, Papa Roach, P.O.D.). On October 4th, 2005, the record was released under the name of Flyleaf. Appearances on the album include Dave Navarro of Jane's Addiction and Ryan White of Resident Hero. The first secular single from their debut album is I'm So Sick, but it should also be noted that All Around Me has been released to Christian radio. Fully Alive will be the second single release, and goes for radio on June 3, 2006.

In early 2006, the band was moved up to J-Records as a part of an exclusive band development deal between J-Records, RCA and Octone Records. The band is also distributed to Christian markets under SRE Recordings.

On April 12, 2006, Flyleaf performed for the first time on live television on Fuse's Daily Download. They did two songs for the program including their single I'm So Sick, which has been a Top 5 video at the station, as well as All Around Me. On June 13, 2006, Flyleaf will be appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live, marking their second live TV performance to date.

Their music is a mix of screamo-esque emotion-based vocals and hard rock instrumentals. The band cites influences such as Rage Against The Machine, Foo Fighters, Incubus, Soundgarden, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Nirvana. They have toured with Staind, P.O.D., Trust Company, Three Doors Down, Saliva, Seether, and Shinedown and are recently headlining their own tour. During late summer of 2006, the band will be playing on the revival of the Family Values Tour. The tour consists of Korn, Deftones, Flyleaf, Stone Sour, and Dir En Grey.

ALBUMS/EP'S

2001 - Just a Test

2002 - Broken Wings

2003 - Passerby EP

2004 - Flyleaf EP Sampler

2005 - Flyleaf EP - 6 Track

2005 - Flyleaf LP Sampler

2005 - Flyleaf LP

2005 - Octone Holiday EP

2006 -I'm So Sick Single

2006 - Connect sets

2004-2006 - Unreleased