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THE FLASHCUBES - A Brief History
The Flashcubes may be the great lost power pop group of the 1970s. Formed in 1977 in the sleepy little city of Syracuse, NY, the Flashcubes combined their love for the timeless British Invasion rock'n' roll of the Beatles, the Kinks, the Hollies and the Who with the high-energy sounds of the punk rockers just starting to make a big noise around that same time. Throw in a healthy reverence for classic power pop acts like Big Star and the Raspberries--and a healthy irreverence for everything else--and you've got a fair picture of what made the Flashcubes shine so brightly.
FLASHCUBES (1977-1979)
The Flashcubes are guitarists Paul Armstrong and Arty Lenin, bassist Gary Frenay and drummer Tommy Allen. During their initial life span of 1977-1980, the Flashcubes released only two singles, "Christi Girl" and "Wait Til Next Week," on their own Northside Records label. They always seemed on the brink of bigger things--everyone who knew them just presumed the Flashcubes would become stars--but the big things never materialized. Paul was replaced by Mick Walker in '79, and the 'Cubes were history by 1980.
Cortland Street Fest 2007 (pics by Jimmy Lawler)
The individual Flashcubes each pursued their own separate visions. Tommy toured the world with brit-soul-pop sensation Paul Young before moving to L.A., where he became involved in artist management and production; he worked with the Sighs on both of their great power pop albums, and co-produced Kara's Flowers' first record,(now known as Maroon5), and continues to play drums in and produce NYC roots/rock band the Mudlarks. Paul started his own band, the Richards, and moved to Boston; the Richards released a great CD, Over The Top, in 1995. Arty played with power pop icon Paul Collins, appearing on the Paul Collins Band's 1993 From Town To Town CD and later producing his own solo CD, A Life Of Ease in 2000. Gary became a solo acoustic act, with two SAMMY (Syracuse Area Music) Awards for best songwriter and two acclaimed CD's, Armory Square & Jigsaw People, distributed nationally by Tangible Music, and a Frenay & Lenin CD, Live@Pastabilities in 1999.
And all good things come to those who wait. In 1993, Paul, Arty, Gary and Tommy reunited to record four new tracks. One of those tracks, "It's You Tonight," appeared on the first volume of Yellow Pills, Big Deal Record's justly acclaimed series of power pop compilation CD's. Rhino also dug up "Christi Girl" for inclusion on Come Out And Play, a collection of 70's vintage power pop in the label's D.I.Y. series. The 'Cubes also recorded tracks for The Beat Or Not The Beat, a Paul Collins tribute disc recently issued in Australia, and for a Raspberries tribute disc, Preserved.
THE FLASHCUBES @ IPO (Boston, NYC 2002-2006)
The Flashcubes' next project, Bright Lights, was the long-awaited first album from the greatest power pop group you'd never heard. Bright Lights offered all of the best of the Flashcubes, then and now. Fans of pure pop delighted in the Raspberries groove of "No Promise," unrepentant punks shook their fists to the angry clatter of "Got No Mind," while anyone who remembers ever being a teenager in love swooned along to "Christi Girl." And that was just for starters, as the old stuff had been remixed for maximum punch, and the new stuff simply proved that a great band was always a great band. Then and now, the Flashcubes are a great band.
The renewal of their recording career coincides with a renewed commitment to live performances. The past few years have brought appearances in Syracuse, Boston, New Jersey, New York City, Rochester and Los Angeles (where they were one of the featured acts at the International Pop Overthrow, a pop festival of over 100 bands from around the world).
In 2002, the band celebrated their 25th anniversary with a tour of Japan (that yielded a live CD, Raw Power Pop) and with the release of an all-new CD, Brilliant (Dec 2002).
THE FLASHCUBES- "Hello Suzie" @ IPO Boston, MA 2006
