Flash Boys

     Flash Boys have been slinking and slithering their way around the dusty floors of Austin, Texas since 2006. Snagging their name from the Dead Boys song “War Zone,” these guys aren’t just a flaccid Dead Boys tribute band though. Flash Boys are however a band that is heavily influenced by punk and glam bands from the past. Just from the opening song to their killer 2011 LP Dyin’ For Somethin’ To Live For you can hear Hanoi Rocks strut, Heartbreakers chops, and yes sprinkles of Stiv and the boy’s bombastic style. The guys in this band are all rock n’ roll veterans and have had some time to really hone their craft. Flash Boys write new and fresh sounding songs that are heavily swayed by the music you can tell they so dearly love. 

Interview by J Castro

Let’s start off by telling me who are The Flash Boys and what you all do in the band:

Johnny Miller on drums

Mark Douglas on bass

Darren Bond on guitar

Frankie Nowhere on vocals

Frankie will be answering these questions.

The band formed in 2006 if I’m not mistaken, can you tell me about how you all met and decided to play music together?

FRANKIE: I put the word out in February of that year. I got responses from Mark, Jamey Simms and Mike Dempsey. That was the original line up. I knew all those guys from playing shows with their bands over the years. We locked in our sound pretty quick and recorded a debut CD that we put out ourselves that is now out of print. We’ve had a couple of lineup changes over the nine years. The current lineup is the same formula. We’re all friends that’ve been playing shows together for years.

The Flash Boys are currently based in Austin, TX.  Is it tough playing shows in a town like that where there’s so much happening all the time or does the fact that Austin is such a music town make it easier to draw crowds for you guys? 

FRANKIE: You have to be something special to stand out here. There are a ton of bands and some really great bands. We’ve been pretty lucky that people come out and support us.

You guys name bands like The Damned, The Germs, and The Dead Boys as influences. Can you remember the first time you heard punk music? Where were you and who introduced it to you?

FRANKIE: I discovered punk through skateboarding in the Mississippi Delta, which was like being on an island, in the ‘80’s before the internet. I really loved what I heard first which was west coast punk. A friend had a cassette tape with various bands on it. On that tape was The Germs “Land Of Treason.” I went on a mission to find out everything I could about the band. In the process I found out that I had to get out of the delta.

You guys have played with some legendary musicians before: Cheetah Chrome, Sonny Vincent, and most recently Dick Dale. Someone once told me “Don’t meet your heroes.” In your experiences, do you find that statement to have any truth?

FRANKIE: For the most part all the legendary guys we’ve played with have been good to us. I personally have shared the stage with many of my heroes over the last twenty years and had good experiences. I hope it stays that way.

The profile picture on your Facebook page is a great picture of Bo Diddley and Joey Ramone? Can you tell me a bit about it?

FRANKIE: Nick Curran, may he rest in peace, created that when he was our guitar player. We used to always talk about how we didn’t see boundaries in genres of great music and artists. We actually did a small run of shirts with that design. Nick was always doing cool things for us. He did the “Dead at the Bus Stop” video on YouTube for us too.

I was watching this interview with John Lydon and he was saying how much he dislikes Green Day because they don’t have anything original about them and everything they do isn’t their own.  Putting Green Day aside, do you think a good rock n’ roll band these days has to be “original” to be relevant?

FRANKIE: All I know is that when the right group of people come together and make music, a magic happens. I’m not sure what’s original in 2015, but I know what I like and what sounds good. It’s relevant when that magic happens.

I always hear people saying how many “life lessons” one can learn by playing Golf.  What do you think are some “life lessons” people can take away from being in a band, if any?

FRANKIE: It’s a marriage, so you have to learn how to work together. When to give each other room, cancel practice, deal with their personal issues, etc. There are so many ups and downs in life and in a band. The thing to do is take those experiences and grow and write good music from the heart.

What’s the best way for people to hear your music and where can people find your records?

FRANKIE: We have videos on YouTube. You can get our music on CD Baby http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/flashboys2 and Spotify. Whenever our stock runs out at CD Baby we’ll make some more. We have put out everything ourselves, though that kinda hurts us because no one has heard of us.

What does the rest of 2015 have in store for The Flash Boys?

We are currently in the studio recording nine songs we’ve had around for a little bit, then taking some time off. Johnny’s playing in Zero Percent. Mark is in The Stabbies, Darren does solo shows and I’m reuniting my old band Eastside Suicides. We’ve had a couple of lineup changes since our guitar player Nick Curran died. We decided to record what we have, hopefully that’s well received and we’ll be back fresh. We just did the basic tracks on 7/12/15 and are pretty excited already.

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Crusaders of Love

      Crusaders of Love aren’t just an excellent band that take tips from past rock n’ roll royalty like Marc Bolan, Johnny Thunders and Alex Chilton, they’re a force that struggles to preserve a time in rock n’ roll history when music mattered, a time when people took pride in their record collection and actually knew a little about the band that was emblazoned on their T-shirt. I may be preaching to the already converted and it might sound like a terrible cliché in the world of underground rock n’ roll, but evidence seems to show that this ideology is dying in popular culture. Art has been reduced to “entertainment” and consumed like a fast food cheeseburger. Music like what the Crusaders of Love play deserves to be savored. Only then will your soul receive the sustenance it needs and deserves to carry on.               

Interview by J Castro

Let’s start out with some introductions.  Who are the Crusaders of Love and what do you all do in the band?

ALEX: I'm Alex, I sing and play rhythm guitar. Fabrice is my co-captain, he plays lead guitar and sing backups, then comes the rhythm section with Didine on bass and Max on drums.

You guys are based in Lille, a beautiful city in northern France rich in history. In fact, I read that there are records that the area has been inhabited as early as 2000 BC! All that is well and good but what’s it like playing in a power pop rock n’ roll band there?  Is there a good, supportive scene in Lille?

ALEX: It looks like you know more about Lille than I do ha ha. But yes it's a very old city though not much of a rocking place. I don't know any other band here that plays the same kind of rock n’ roll we do. Some people here like us, some don't, and some don't get it I think. Sloppy reverb drenched garage rock is the popular thing these days in France. So yes we feel a little alienated but, we play the music we like and won't compromise so it's all cool.

You guys came out with a new 12” EP titled Sacred earlier this year.  I want to ask you about the title.  Are you referring to anything in particular as “sacred”?

ALEX: Sometime I feel like people and especially young kids don't really give a shit about genuine rock n’ roll anymore. It seems like we live in a world where nothing is sacred anymore, everything is artificial, disposable, from corporate music to movies...  etc. You know, when they make a new Robocop movie, what's the point, the original was great. Why can't we just stick with it and come up with new ideas?

You guys have toured a lot, all over Europe and even The States a couple of times (including a house show in my hometown of Phoenix, AZ) How are American and European audiences different? 

ALEX: I feel like the American audience is more committed, from what we experienced. Maybe it's because we were a French band and were kind of “exotic” to them, I don't know. There's not really any difference except everyone is covered with tattoos in America. We loved it and we really want to come back, it's been four years already since the last time. I remember the Phoenix house show well, we all got very drunk and smoked weed with some people. Some guy interviewed me and Fab in his truck. That was a fun night, and I saw a scorpion.

There is a folk story about the first time John Lennon met Bob Dylan. Lennon was a huge Bob Dylan fan and he asked him what he thought of the Beatles and Dylan said “It’s good but you guys aren’t really saying anything in your music” and of course John Lennon was devastated by this comment. Do you think music has to “say anything” to be significant or poignant? 

ALEX: I don't like when music goes political and shit like that, it bores me because I always thought the music comes first. I think you can be touched by words sometimes because it makes you feel like you've been there or it takes you somewhere, kind of like when you read a book, it stimulates your imagination. But I don't really like when it gets too arty or poetry shit. I think The Beatles were more popular than Bob Dylan; he was jealous and just wanted to depreciate John Lennon.

I was reading an interview with Keith Richards and he said that anyone that buys digital music is getting “short changed”.  Do you agree? 

ALEX: I only bought digital twice. I didn't really feel like I got ripped off but I didn't like it either. It's cliché to say that but, yes I think the object is important. When I was a young kid just getting into music I would always look at the pictures in the booklet listening to Guns n’ Roses, the object was definitely important to me. So yes I agree with Keith!

When people walk away from a Crusaders of Love show, what do you hope they take away with them?  What do you hope they are feeling?

ALEX: T-shirts and LPs... Ha, ha, ha!  We want people to have a great time, we want them to be surprised and leave with our songs stuck in their heads at the end of the night.

If Crusaders of Love could tour with any band in the history of rock n’ roll, who would it be and why?

ALEX: Guns n’ Roses! Because they're the reason I pick up a guitar when I was 11 years old.

Where can people go to hear or buy your music?

ALEX: Bandcamp, I ship all orders myself so let me know if you want me to write you kind words in French. Amandine can spread perfume on your LP too. All good record stores should have our records, ask for it! Or come to shows! Otherwise I think you can get the digital stuff pretty much everywhere, iTunes, Amazon, Deezer... you can find our LPs pretty easily on lots of online stores too.

What lies ahead for Crusaders of Love for the rest of 2014?

ALEX: We are currently working on new material for our next full length. We may also start recording some of it. I'm not sure we'll be touring much for the rest of the year apart from shows here and there. But we're planning a big tour for 2015, possibly America!

Crusaders Of Love - Can't Get Enough from Marcus Wilén on Vimeo.

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