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“On Fyre” is a Matador reissue of the of the Lyres 1982 debut album on Boston’s homegrown Ace of Hearts label. The Lyres, lead by the charismatic Jeff “Monoman” Conolly were among the premiere bands of the early 80s club band renaissance in Boston Massachusetts. Only two other bands, Mission of Burma and the Pixies were arguably more significant players in a music scene that revolved around tiny, smoke-filled, standing- room-only music venues like Cantone’s, the Rat, the Underground and the In Square Men’s Bar. The neo-garage rock of the Lyres was particularly well suited to the sweaty hard edged clubs of that era. The Lyres embodied all that was pure and passionate in the music of the venerable Boston school of garage punk.
Monoman, a walking archive of garage rock, was initially involved with DMZ, the seminal Boston garage rock band of the late sixties. DMZ, along with performers like Willie “Loco” Alexander, provided a blueprint for the for the the Boston punk scene. If Willie Alexander was the godfather of Boston punk, then Monoman and DMZ were his heir apparents. DMZ actually got signed by a major label (Sire), but production quality was so abysmal that even garage afficiandos hated the Flo and Eddy (of the Turtle’s) drum heavy mix of sound of the mix. DMZ mutated into the Lyres in the early eighties and the band recorded “Help You Ann” a local hit on Ace of Hearts. “On Fyre” is arguably the most significant album of the post-punk garage movement. Monoman’s choppy Vox Continental organ is the signature sound of the Lyres. The snarling vocals, the punky Danelectro guitar and the flat un-miked drum sound suggested a time tunnel back to the mid-sixties heyday of true garage bands like Question Mark and the Mysterians and the Seeds. The technical ability of the Lyres surpassed those “one-hit wonder” bands and put them in a class of garage bands that were actually musically accomplished, like Roky Erikson’s legendary 13th Floor Elevators.
“On Fyre” has a dazzling and warm analogic mix which enriches authentic garage esthetic the Lyre’s sound. The first song, “Don’t Give It Up” became the Lyres anthem of hope and glory, in their turbo changed live shows. It is as close to perfect as garage rock has ever gotten. There is a fade-in guitar and drums which is joined by the organ and Mono’s half spoken vocals which segues into a pummeling chorus of “don’t give it up”. The bluesly guitar break which is charmingly eccentric because Danny McCormack resolutely refuses to bend a single note on his vintage Daneletro guitar. All the while, Mono bangs a tamborine on his hip, while chording the ubiquitous Vox Continental with his right hand. On “Help You Ann” Danny’s guitar is on a delay switch, and the guitar’s cascading echo displays Danny’s mastery of pre-digital guitar technique. “Love Me Til the Sun Shines” is one of those innocent but seductive flower power ballads that shows the Lyres mastery of Hart and Boyle school of songwritting. The odd time signature and slowed tempo of “Tired of Waiting” comes close to trumping (but not quite) the original Kinks version. Another triumph is a cover of Pete Best’s obscure “The Way I Feel About You.” The choice of covering a song by the “failed Beatle” is yet another trademark obscurantist ploy Monoman’s enless bag of tricks. The Matador release has also included 10 bonus tracks in this amended issue of the original. These are not throwaways or outtakes, but terrific studio cuts which actually enhance the legacy of the original album. The orginal cover art with the distinctive Lyre’s logowork is wisely retained from the 1982 Ace of Heart’s vinyl release.
The Lyres’ cult following has expanded steadily since there final album in 1993. The passage of twenty years since the original “On Fyre” has cemented the Lyres reputation, in the hearts and minds those fans of; the Stooges, the 13th Floor Elevators and other “ragged but right” architects of timeless garage rock. [Gavin B.]
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