Wednesday, September 8

Fun Lovin’ Criminals. Remember them?

Perhaps best known for Scooby Snacks in 1996, they’re well and truly back, with a series of concerts and a new single We, The Three.

After some tricky times in recent years the boys are all friends and all happily settled and at one with the world.

And they’ve all relocated to this country, despite their New York connections.

Their album Classic Fantastic is testament to their new verve and joie de vivre. It features their trademark eclectic mix of sound and is a work to be proud of, according to Leicester-born drummer Frank Benbini.

“We’re like brothers from other mothers,” he says. “We argue, go on tour around the world together and still look after each other.

“We still create music and still have magical shows all over the world.

“It’s what we always do. The three of us love music of all kinds. The album has hip hop, blues, rock, funk, latin and reggae. You put all the styles in a pot and what comes out is FLC music. It’s eclectic.

“It’s a bit more upbeat because the last ones were clouded by the bad times.”

So what of these bad times the band suffered? It seems they were out of commission for almost seven years. That’s apparently been down to bad money and bad blood.

“There had been major problems with the band members and it got to the stage where we didn’t know if we were carrying on,” Frank says. “That period started from the time the World Trade Centre was hit.

“Then we had people taking money from accounts they shouldn’t have done, we lost our management and we’ve been in a law suit for the past four or five years.

“It wasn’t the best of times for us to be creative, but once we got back and Classic Fantastic came out this year we knew things had worked out.

“And all good US bands at the end of the day need a good UK drummer.”

And what of the move from America? The two from New York started the band back in 1993.

Frank himself was a Brooklyn boy for quite some time, but made the break to come back home.

“We’re all based in this country now,” he says. “We had a period when I was based in Brooklyn, New York, for five or six years.

“The others were there, too. But now we have all moved over here.

“All three of us have moved now and they have married English girls, so this is our base.”

The first leg of their tour was in March to kick-start the promotion of it and they are now back on the road for the tour proper.

And it’s tough work, almost a gig a night throughout September, covering the whole of the UK and then nipping over into Europe to begin the third leg.

Frank says: “We have always been a live band. That’s the greatest thing about FLC. We have always had a good show and always taken it seriously – it’s good to be back out there doing shows.

“It’s been going down great with the fans. They know every word and that’s good for when we forget them. It’s been getting good reviews.

“The pace isn’t too bad. A run of five days and then a day off. It’s more cost-effective too.”

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Nottingham is full of fun, according to the traditional football chant. It's full of a few other things, too, so while I welcome comments, don't bother adding anything that won't get published...