I’ve been listening to the Flashcubes long enough now to be considered a long-time fan, and this tribute, Make Something Happen, is testament to how much love there is for this great band. If this is your first time hearing them, dive in, and be richly rewarded.

Gary Frenay of the band was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: How did the project come together?

Gary Frenay: The album is really the brainchild of our friend and de facto biographer Carl Cafarelli. He’s the one responsible for getting us on Big Stir Records in the first place, and he pitched the idea to us, and to Rex and Christina at Big Stir. I really love nearly every track. But the real surprises are bands who did their own thing with one of our songs like sparkle*jets u.k. on the title track, The Verbs on “I Need Glue,” and The Sorrows on “Radio.” I honestly think many of these versions are better than our own. As a songwriter, it’s the ultimate compliment to have someone do your song.

AW: Were songs assigned to people, or could they choose their own songs?

GF: A combination, really. The project started slowly with just a few takers. We loved the results but were doubtful we could get enough people to participate. It’s one thing for other musicians to pay lip service to your band, and quite another to take the time and expense to actually record (at home or in studio) our songs. We took a three-pronged approach, with Carl, Rex and Christina, and us (the four band members) all compiling wishlists of artists to approach. Via his longtime radio show with Dana Bonn (This Is Rock & Roll Radio), Carl had many direct contacts with bands at and above our level. Rex and Christina had a roster of Big Stir artists to ask, while we reached out to many of our longtime friends and CNY stalwarts; Ed Hamill (Hamell On Trial), Tom Kenny (former Tearjerker and longtime cartoon voice of SpongeBob Squarepants), Chris Von Sneidern (legendary indie pop artist and veteran of the Flamin’ Groovies), Pete and Maura Kennedy (internationally known folk duo), and Meegan Voss (former PopTart and current leader of The Verbs with her husband drummer/producer Steve Jordan who is – oh, by the way – also the drummer now for Rolling Stones)!

AW: The Flashcubes cover themselves on it. That must have been fun for you?

GF: That was a real treat! As tracks were being assembled, Carl approached the band about doing a few new Flashcubes recordings to include in the package. While it is unconventional for the artist(s) being honored, to participate in their own tribute album, we are nothing, if not unconventional. We wrote and recorded three new songs (Paul’s “Reminisce,” my “The Sweet Spot,” and Arty’s “If These Hands”) in time to include them in the package. And Big Stir – bless them – were so psyched about our new recordings that they released each as a single, one a month throughout the summer, to promote the release of the album

AW: Would you say the band is universally loved?

GF: I don’t know about “universally loved,” but we’ve really undergone a renaissance in the 21st Century. Although we were a part of the original New Wave and Power Pop scene in the 70s when we started, we weren’t able to ever score a major label deal like so many of our contemporaries. But over the past few decades, we seem to have become bigger than we ever were in our original incarnation. With the tours of Japan (’02 and ’12), our numerous appearances at IPO (International Pop Overthrow) festivals throughout the US and, of course, and our new recordings -studio and live - it feels like we’ve found a new audience, which is amazing for a band that formed in the summer of 1977.

AW: Some of these songs take on new meanings when someone of the opposite gender sings them, which is great. Was anyone shy about doing that?

GF: No one made an issue of it, that I know of. The Kennedys changed the gender on Arty’s song, “Walking Through The Park,” but I think the other four just went with it, which is very cool!

AW: There are a couple of bands, Hamell On Trial and the Kennedy’s, that are more associated with folk. I think it’s great they're on the album.

GF: I agree. I love their tracks. And it’s inspiring to hear the different approaches some of the bands took.

AW: Other types of pop are represented here too, like garage rock. Were you surprised by its appeal?

GF: Not really. There seems to always be an undercurrent of appeal to basic rock & roll.

AW: Do you hope the band picks up new fans with this comp?

GF: Absolutely! We just keep doing what we do, and hope to find new fans along the way. Every new record is a door into potential new fans.