Olaf Growald
It’s been 15 years since Brandin Lea, Fletcher Lea, Cory Kreig, and Todd Harwell have been in the same room together. Even longer since they performed live together. Even longer since they were living the high life, enjoying the excesses a successful career in rock ’n’ roll can bring. And even longer since their band, in a slightly different iteration, made its debut on VH1 as the soon-to-be-stars of a groundbreaking new competitive reality show called “Bands on the Run.”
One of Fort Worth’s most popular alternative rock groups at the dawn of the 2000s, Flickerstick is the stuff of local music legend. You have to see it to believe it. Thanks to YouTube, you can. Search for “VH1 Bands on the Run,” and you can witness the band’s on-screen antics: getting so wasted, they could barely stand; fighting with one another and the other bands competing on the show; cheating on their girlfriends and wives who were back home — none of which is revolutionary TV these days, what with entire networks devoted to reality shows. But at the time, it was practically unheard of.
More importantly, the Emmy Award-winning show is a testament to Flickerstick’s talent. They did, after all, win the show based on their live performances, a swirl of trippy, melodic atmospherics and memorable hooks delivered with blunt, punk rock force. Watch their performance of “Direct Line to the Telepathic,” and you’ll understand why they were — and are to this day — such an important component of Fort Worth’s music scene.
“They were the next Radiohead — that’s what I thought,” says a VH1 producer who worked on “Bands on the Run.”
Flickerstick pulled the plug long ago after success came and went. But earlier this year, on the two-decade anniversary of “Bands on the Run’s” original air date, a new Flickerstick Facebook page announced some very good news: Welcoming Home the Astronauts, the group’s must-hear record from 2000, would be rereleased with new sound and packaging. The band also just released a new compilation, When We Were Young: Singles, B-Sides & Rarities, 1997-2004.
And now there are rumblings of a reunion. They’re already halfway there: The photo shoot for this story brought together three of the five original members, plus longtime drummer Todd Harwell, who replaced the group’s well-known drummer Dominic Weir, who now lives in New York. It’s the first time they’ve all been together since 2005, Fletcher says.
“Immediately we just started laughing when we saw each other, just picking up where we left off,” he says.
To commemorate the rerelease of Welcoming Home the Astronauts and to toast the 20th anniversary of the wildly entertaining “Bands on the Run,” we chatted with the band and others closely tied to them.
The “classic” Flickerstick lineup, from left to right: Fletcher Lea, Dominic Weir, Brandin Lea, Rex Ewing, and Cory Kreig.
From day 1, the group’s odd-sounding name has been the subject of debate among fans.
Cory Kreig, band guitarist: I used to have a notebook that I would write in all the time, and while trying to come up with a good name for the band, I wrote down a bunch of words, including “flicker” and “stick.” Brandin was the one who put them together. It sounded good to me. Ever since, people have been trying to figure out what it means. Wonder how many people have Googled the word “Flickerstick”?
Technically, the group came together in Denton, where founding members Brandin Lea and Cory Kreig were attending the University of North Texas.
Kreig: Originally, it was Brandin and I and two friends we went to high school with. We didn’t have any money, so we had to drive to Fort Worth all the time to rehearse at Brandin’s parents’ dance studio. Fletch joined in ’97, and we put out a record called Chloroform the One You Love. We were so poor. The cover is black and white. We couldn’t afford a color cover. When Dom joined in ’98, the band changed from dudes who just played some shows here and there to us trying to be more of a real band. We got a rehearsal spot in Dallas, catty-cornered to Deep Ellum, and we started going out more and meeting other bands and music industry professionals. We hit our stride when [guitarist] Rex [Ewing] joined in ’99. It was at that moment that we all thought, “Hey, we have something here.”
Brandin and Fletcher were born into the entertainment industry. Their parents, Bruce and Frances Lea, were Broadway performers and renown dancers, and both opened their own dance studios in Fort Worth.
Bruce Lea: I remember when Brandin was born, and we’d take him on the road with us. We would literally pull out a dresser drawer in the hotel room, put a soft blanket inside of it, and that’s where he would sleep.
Brandin Lea, lead singer: This is how big of a deal my parents are. You know Debbie Reynolds, right? Carrie Fisher’s mom. Well, my parents and Debbie and Carrie were all together one day, I think at Debbie’s house, and Debbie and Carrie had this huge, huge fight, like yelling and screaming at each other. Carrie must have been 17 or 18, and she was yelling at her mom that she did not want to go to some stupid audition for some stupid sci-fi movie. But her mom made her go. Turns out, the movie was “Star Wars.” That was my parents’ world. Of course, it was contagious.
The band hired a manager, Paul Bassman, who helped land one of their songs onto a Billboard compilation. The song caught the ear of VH1, who wanted the Lea brothers to star in a show about siblings in bands. The show never materialized, but VH1 invited the group to audition for a battle-of-the-bands show in which the winner would be awarded a grand prize of $50,000 cash, $100,000 worth of Guitar Center equipment, an A&R showcase, and a music video. After several auditions, Flickerstick was offered one of four slots on the show.
Brandin: After we got the invite to be on the show, we debated back and forth. We had no idea what to expect. There were maybe one or two other shows on the air at the time that were a little similar, so we didn’t have anything we could point to and say, “This is what it’s going to be like.” We definitely didn’t want to be known as the band from a TV show. Back then, you had to make it the right way — by touring, by putting out records, by working your asses off. Now, it doesn’t matter how you make it. You make it because you had a song on a TV show, or some influencer shared your video. Back then, credibility meant something.
Fletcher: We had one more audition to do before we were chosen to be on the show, and my fiancé was due to have our first baby. We had to fly out to California. We wouldn’t be gone longer than 24 hours. I kept thinking, “Please don’t have the baby, please don’t have the baby.” And as we’re taking off, I pull out my flip phone, and she calls to tell me she’s in labor. I couldn’t do anything about it — we were already taxiing down the runway. When we land, I’m calling her, I’m calling her mom, I’m calling my mom — she has to have an emergency C-section, and I’m freaking out. But everything turned out OK. My son was born happy and healthy. That was probably the first bit of drama surrounding this show.
Dominic Weir: My initial thought was, hell yes, let’s do it. Brandin and Cory thought it may ruin our image, you know, a rock band selling out and being on TV. So, we went into it with a we-don’t-care-if-we-win-or-not attitude and just had as much fun as we could.
The rules of the “Bands on the Run” were simple: Flickerstick and three other groups — the Josh Dodes Band from New York, Harlow from Los Angeles, and Soulcracker from San Diego — competed on tour to draw the biggest crowds and sell the most merchandise. Bands also competed musically by performing in battle-of-the-bands competitions.
Kevin Morra, “Bands on the Run” producer: These types of shows weren’t even called “reality TV” yet. That’s how early on this was. There was “Road Rules” and “The Real World” on MTV, but when “Survivor” turned into such a big hit, every network was like, “We need one of these shows.” VH1 was a part of that parade, and since it was a music network, they came up with a music-themed show. It had an art-versus-commerce element to it. Who could sell the most merch and tickets but also who did audiences like more?
The band on stage at Trees in Dallas in 2003.
Less than two minutes into the first episode, Kreig sets the tone for Flickerstick’s modus operandi. In an on-camera interview, he says: “We’re gonna drink, we’re gonna party, we’re gonna meet chicks.”
Kreig: And that’s exactly what happened.
Each band was followed nonstop by two teams of camera crews and producers — one during the day, a second one at night.
Morra: I had the daytime shift, so my crew would capture these guys in their drunken comas from the night before. Sometimes we’d have to wait around all morning just for them to get out of bed. I’ll never forget the distinct smell of their hotel rooms — booze, unwashed clothes, body odor. There was usually a girl or two in there, too. We would walk into that every afternoon.
Weir: When my fiancé and I watched the first episode on YouTube, I told her, “Brace yourself.” She was appalled, and I kinda didn’t blame her.
Brandin: I always think it’s funny when people ask if we were acting.
Morra: We didn’t give them any direction or coaching or anything like that. Matter of fact, sometimes they would turn off their mics or try to hide something from the cameras. We had to remind them of what they agreed to. They kept us on our toes.
Kreig: What we were doing on that show, we were doing here at home. That was kind of our thing. We’d get up late, start drinking, then go out to some clubs to promote ourselves or upcoming shows and then start drinking and then we’d walk home, sometimes with some girls, and party and pass out. It’s just that it was on TV now. I’m not embarrassed by anything we did. I don’t cringe when I see myself doing whatever. We had a Motley Crue, old-school rock ’n’ roll mindset. Even before we were on TV or got signed to a major label, that’s who we were.
Fletcher: My son found all the episodes on YouTube when he was about 14 or 15. So then we had to have the talk. This is where I was in my life. I was a different person in a different place. And I told him, this is what’s great about relationships: You can make mistakes and still stay together.
Nearly half a million viewers tuned in each week, especially musicians, who connected with the show’s subject matter.
Jon Wurster, drummer for Chapel Hill, N.C., indie-rock band Superchunk: We used to have watching parties; it was so good. It still is. That show stands the test of time because, to this day, that’s what rock bands are like on the road. I would advise any young person who’s in a band to watch that show to get a fairly good idea of what touring is going to be like. You’re going to have fun, get into trouble, and have a lot of explaining to do when you get home.
When it came to the commerce side of the competition, the group often lost. But they made up for it by winning fans over with their stellar live performances, which is ultimately how they won the competition.
Brandin: We were terrible salespeople. We really were. We never hung out at the merch booth, which they showed on the show. What we were good at was performing, of turning people into fans through our live shows. I’m so glad that’s how we won. Not by selling T-shirts or posters or whatever but by performing.
Weir: We fought a lot, but when it came time to performing, we were always on, always in step with one another. When we went on stage, the five of us bonded in an emotional and musical way that made all the BS go away. Man, talking about this stuff brings back memories.
Josh Dodes, show competitor: They did seem to have a lot of internal conflict, but they also had a visceral connection to their audience. I wasn’t surprised when they won.
Brandin Lea, Kreig, and Ewing on stage at the Barfly club in London in 2002
Winning “Bands on the Run” led to a record deal with Sony-owned Epic Records. The label rereleased the group’s Welcoming Home the Astronauts album, which received a positive, three-star review from Rolling Stone. But the events of 9/11 put a halt on the band’s career.
Fletcher: We were in New York when the towers were attacked. I remember our manager called us that morning and said, “Do you know what’s going on? Go look outside your window.”
Brandin: When our manager told us what was going on, like a lot of people, I thought there’d been an accident, and someone flew their plane into the World Trade Center. When I looked out my window, the second plane hit.
Weir: It felt like an earthquake.
Brandin: We got over to the site as fast as we could to see if we could do anything — could we help in some way?
Fletcher: That was the day I decided that if Flickerstick didn’t work out, I was going to join the military. Like a lot of people, I was angry.
Brandin: The world changed in so many ways that day. We were supposed to play our big showcase for the label that night, and obviously, the show got canceled. After 9/11, there was a big shift in the music industry, a big sea change. I remember the label just seemed to lose interest in us and not really know what to do with us. We fought to get off the label, to buy back our record, and eventually we did.
The group continued to tour and record, but eventually it began to splinter. Weir was the first to go, not by his own hand, though.
Weir: I was out of control. Alcohol, drugs, my attitude — I was mad at the other guys for some things that went back to our record deal, and I made their lives miserable the last three years I was in the band. Eventually, they let me go. I joined another band in California and then moved to New York and just didn’t talk to them for a long time.
Kreig then left the band, followed by Fletcher, who made good on his promise to join the military. After Fletcher left, Brandin decided Flickerstick, which at that point included Harwell and local singer/songwriter Tim Locke, had run its course.
Brandin: When we split up, it didn’t sit well with Rex. He and I were the only original members. He was hurt. I know he wanted to continue. He wanted the band to continue. We played a couple farewell shows — one in Dallas, the other in Fort Worth at the Aardvark, which had been our home for so long. Rex got there. He played. He played well. And as soon as that last song ended, he was gone. That was the last time I saw or talked to him. I’ve tried to reach out to him, but he won’t talk to me.
Rex Ewing: I’m not interested in talking about any of it.
Olaf Growald
For the next several years, Brandin struggled with the decision he made to end the band. He developed an addiction to alcohol, which exasperated his then-undiagnosed bipolar disorder.
Brandin: I was never OK with how it ended. That wasn’t the way I wanted it to end after all we’d been through. It sent me into some very dark years that I’m lucky to have survived. I’ve never given up hope that one day we’ll play again and end it the way it should have ended so many years ago. I love these guys with all my heart. Playing with them again, even just one last show, would mean the world to me; and I know, thanks to social media, that a whole lot of people out there agree with me on that.
Fletcher: I’d be down with one or two final shows.
Weir: I’d love it if we could do one more show together.
Kreig: Never say never.
For updates, visit facebook.com/groups/flickerstick
