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Flying without wings

THEY MAY just be another boy band ­- the Irish version of Backstreet Boys or 'N Sync. But these five guys from the Emerald Isle have major popular appeal and a distinctive sound that can be called their own.

Bryan McFadden, Nicholas "Nicky'' Byrne, Shane Filan, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily, more popularly known as Westlife, have scored enviable success even as they continue to capture audiences around the globe.

They are Ireland's latest pop export following other bands like U2, Cranberries, The Corrs and notably, Boyzone, whose lead soloist, superstar Ronan Keating, is one of Westlife's managers. In the United Kingdom, Westlife's self­titled debut album reached number one and yielded three No. 1 singles. They're the only pop act with five consecutive number one singles, besting the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. They have sold over eight million records worldwide and their debut album has been certified platinum five times.

''Amazing," was how Kian described their success in barely two years in the music scene. ''It's been very fast and more than we can even dream of.''

Thanks to Boyzone's Keating, who gave his stamp of approval to a fellow boy band waiting in the wings. What's more, Ronan agreed to co­manage Westlife with Boyzone's Svengali manager, Luis Walsh.

Two years ago, life for these five guys was definitely far from what they had imagined it would be. Before Westlife, Bryan was a featured actor in an Irish TV series, "Finarr's Class.'' He idolized Backstreet Boys, Boyzone, Take That and New Kids on the Block.

Nicky, who was inspired by Phil Collins, played professional soccer in England for Leeds United before moving back to Ireland to sing in a karaoke band with his dad.

Shane, who considers Michael Jackson as his biggest musical influence, appeared in the musical ''Grease,'' when he was 12 and joined four different productions of the show.

Kian, who is a huge Backstreet Boys fan, was into acting, piano and guitar playing when he met Shane and Mark while doing musicals.

Mark initially thought a musical career was far­fetched so he never imagined himself recording songs and performing onstage.

''We're from west Ireland which only has a population of 50,000 people,'' Mark allows. ''It's a very small place. This is an amazing thing to happen to us. I never ever dreamed I'd get this far.''

Shane, Kian and Mark, who come from the sleepy town of Sligo, two hours west of Dublin (where Bryan and Nicky hail), were with a band called IOU, appearing in local theater productions. They got a break to sing in a children's hospital featured in a local news TV show. Unknown to them, Louis was watching their performance and was immediately excited by what he saw.

The big boss of Boyzone offered the guys to do support act when the Backstreet Boys played in Dublin, but initially didn't want to manage them. However, when he saw the guys onstage, he changed his mind.

IOU dropped three of its members and took in Nicky and Bryan to form Westside. However, when they found out that a number of existing bands and merchandising companies exist in America with the same name, they changed theirs to Westlife.

The group's debut album locally distributed by BMG Records Pilipinas, spawned several hits like "Swear It Again," 'lf I Let You Go," "Fool Again,'' ''Forever," ''Fly Without Wings,'' and the revival tracks "More Than Words'' by Extremes and "Seasons in the Sun'' by Terry Jacks.

Westlife was in Manila early this week for a one-night concert at the Folk Arts Theaters. The group is currently on a live performance whirl for ''East Meets Westlife Asian Tour 2000,'' to promote special-edition tour repackaged album. The CD, also released by BMG Records, contains Westlife's hits plus six unreleased songs, including the number one single, ''I Have A Dream,'' a revival of an Abba original.

Asked how they differ from other boy bands, Kian replies, "We don't really try to be different, but when you hear our song, you'll know it's us. We have our own kind of music and we want to be known for that."

The boys say where they are now is a dream come true for all of them. ''Two years ago, none of us would ever have dared to dream that we would sign up with a major recorded label, with two great managers behind us,'' Nicky says. ''We feel we have achieved so much in so short a time. We've been very lucky to work with brilliant people like the songwriters. We've also got Louis and Ronan behind us and we're hungry for this.''

The guys have also been fortunate enough to enjoy the support of their families.

''Our families are proud of our success,'' Mark says. ''We are very happy to have their support right from the start. We may not see them very open, but we have our mobile phones wherever we go so we get to talk to them constantly and update them about what's been happening with us.''

Despite their tiring performance juggernaut, Westlife finds time to enjoy simple pleasures even when they are touring. ''It's not all work,'' Nicky points out. ''We take one to two days off to do things that we like. Sometimes, we visit a bar in a hotel, watch out for girls, shop a little. We manage to have fun, too.''