By KENNY CHEE

THEY have been labelled as a "boy band" but pop-opera quartet Il Divo refuse to refer to themselves as such.

"We can't compare ourselves to a boy band because we are not boys. We are guys over 30," joked the quartet's Spanish baritone, Carlos Marin, 40, in a recent phone interview from London.

True, they don't do synchronised dance moves a la Backstreet Boys, but the band - which includes American tenor David Miller, 36; French singer Sebastien Izambard, 36; and Swiss tenor Urs Buhler, 37 - are a group who perform operatic takes on familiar songs like Toni Braxton's Unbreak My Heart.

They will be in town on Sept 21 for a concert at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, as part of the Singapore Grand Prix season. It is their second outing in Singapore.

Marin said that Il Divo differs from boy bands because "when a boy band is put together by a producer, the members are karaoke singers or don't have the background we have".

Three of Il Divo's members made their names on solo opera careers prior to forming the band, while Izambard is a successful pop singer.

They were formed in 2004 by acerbic American Idol judge Simon Cowell, who was highly involved in their first release, the self-titled 2004 album.

But for their latest record titled The Promise, which was released last year,Marin said Cowell "wasn't as involved".

Cowell has since been busy talent spotting other singers such as Leona Lewis and, more recently, Britain's Got Talent runner-up Susan Boyle.

Still, The Promise has sold over two million records worldwide.

It has hit platinum status (over 12,000 copies sold) in Singapore.

"(Our success) is a big surprise," said Marin humbly.

"In the beginning, I thought that we were perhaps going to sell 1,000 to 2,000 albums. I'd go back to the opera and that was it."

They have now sold over 22 million albums worldwide, and have had top-grossing tours such as with Barbra Streisand in 2006.

Il Divo, who last performed in 2007 to a crowd of 8,000 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, are looking forward to returning to Singapore.

Asked what his impressions of the Singapore audience were, Marin replied: "We had an amazing reaction (from the audience) for our concert in 2007, and Singapore is a fantastic city with great nightlife."

kennyc@sph.com.sg

Il Divo perform on Sept 21 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Tickets from $88 to $275 are available through Sistic (Tel: 6348-5555, or www.sistic.com.sg).

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