Retro Spins: Flies On Fire - Flies On Fire

   

Perhaps their song, Anything Goes, is actually the perfect way to sum up Flies On Fire. They're a band that easily flowed from one style to the next, interweaving Southern Rock with a hint of gospel, all seemingly influenced by the classic rock era which came before it.

Perusing the internet, you're not going to find much about the band. It's as if the 80's simply brushed them under the rug in hopes that people would forget about them. Tim Paruszkiewicz, Ritchie D’Albis, Terry “Mess” Messal, and Howard all come from different corners of the USA, but ultimately made their ways to L.A., where fate brought them together.

They achieve national exposure in 1988 when they submitted their self-produced music video, Long Gone Dead, to MTV, winning the show, Basement Tapes. However, it wouldn't be until producer Ric Browde caught one of their live shows that they'd finally land a record deal with ATCO. Their self-titled debut would hit shelves in 1989 to lackluster fanfare.

If you listen to the album, your mind might immediately go to John Mellencamp, and The Black Crowes, the latter who would rekindle the same type of music the Flies were playing with their 1990 debut, Shake Your Money Maker. In retrospect, it's kind of unfair that the latter got all the adulation, while Flies On Fire simply got forgotten.

There's solid instrumentation to be found here. Thunderous drums, slick guitars, and Tim's own flourish of raspy vocals. It comes with a handful of decent tracks, such as the aforementioned Anything Goes, C'Mon, and You Can't Go Back. However, it's probably not an album I'll ever personally revisit.

You Can't Go Back is somewhat a bitter anthem for the Flies, considering how they would be treated by their label, and ultimately ignored. It's a track about nobody remembering you or your name, with lead singer Paruszkiewicz finishing the chorus with, "nobody remembers my name". Sad how accurate that probably is.

While Flies On Fire would release the follow-up Outside Looking In (1991), it failed to garner much attention. Purportedly, the blame is that of then ATCO president, Derek Shulman who simply wasn't interested in the band. He disagreed with their thoughts on what singles should be released, and instead focused his attention on the band, Enuff Z'Nuff, leaving the Flies to ultimately fizzle out before dropping them.

Tim, Ritchie, and Terry would go on to form the short-lived punk band, Vitamade, releasing Everything You Need! in 1996. This would eventually morph into the band VOMF, who released one album as a digital only release, but disbanded in 1999.

These days, the guys have all found regular work, and though they appear to still talk to each other, the subject of Flies Of Fire rarely comes up.

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