| Lyres | |
| Background: | group_or_band |
| Origin: | Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
| Genre: | Garage rock, alternative rock |
| Years Active: | –present |
| Associated Acts: | Barrence Whitfield And The Savages, DMZ, The Real Kids, Yo La Tengo, The A-Bones, Darker My Love, The Hentchmen, The Hate Bombs, Swingin' Neckbreakers, The Maggots, The Sick Rose, Orange Rooftops |
| Website: | www.limbos.org/lyres/ |
| Current Members: | Jeff Conolly (organ, vocals) Steve Aquino (guitar) Paul Murphy (drums) Dave Szczepaniak (bass) |
| Past Members: | Rick Coraccio (bass) Timm Buechler (bass) T.J. O'Brien (guitar) Jeff Gregory (drums) Jeff Phelps (bass) Jason Eaton (guitar) Jared Everett (guitar) Ricky Carmel (guitar) Danny McCormack (guitar) John Bernardo (drums) Jack Hickey (guitar) Matt Miklos (bass) John Smith (drums) Bob MacKenzie (drums) Howard Ferguson (drums) Mike Lewis (bass) Peter Greenberg (guitar) Phil Lenker (bass) |
Lyres are a Boston-area garage rock band led by Jeff Conolly, founded in 1979[1] following the breakup of DMZ. Their most popular songs included "Don't Give It Up Now," 'She Pays The Rent' and "Help You Ann". The original lineup of the band featured Conolly, Rick Coraccio (bass), Ricky Carmel (guitar), and Paul Murphy (drums). By 1981, The Boston Phoenix was calling Lyres "the city’s reigning garage band."[2]
Former DMZ members Coraccio, Murphy, Peter Greenberg, and Mike Lewis all rejoined Conolly in Lyres at some point from 1979 to the early 2000s.[1] The A-Bones drummer Miriam Linna, (a former drummer for The Cramps) and then A-Bones, Yo La Tengo and former Lyres bass player Mike Lewis filled-in with Lyres for a show in 1986. Stiv Bators of The Dead Boys and Lords of the New Church, and Wally Tax of The Outsiders also recorded with Lyres in the late 1980s.
Lyres were less active in 1989, due to Conolly living in California for a brief period. After a renewed period of activity in the early 1990s, the band went through a dormant period until 1999. Conolly is the one member who has been in every lineup during the large number of Lyres personnel changes. In 2009, Lyres played at the Go Sinner So festival in Madrid and an additional date in Porto Nuovo. This line-up included a fill-in Peter Greenberg on guitar.
The song "Help You Ann" was featured on the game Destroy all Humans 2 and on the TV show Rescue Me.