Electric Boys

by Eduardo Rivadavia
Sweden's Electric Boys were one of the first and most celebrated purveyors of the short-lived funk metal phenomenon of the late '80s and early '90s. Led by charismatic singer and guitarist Conny Bloom, the quartet garnered rave reviews and built quite a following in Europe, but never managed to bridge the Atlantic and convert American audiences. Their creative juices were also quickly spent, causing the band to disintegrate into obscurity after only three albums.
In 1988, Conny Bloom formed Electric Boys with bassist Andy Christell in Stockholm. After scoring a significant domestic hit with their first single, "All Lips N' Hips," the group completed their lineup with guitarist Franco Santunione and drummer Niclas Sivegall and set to work on their first album, 1989's critically acclaimed Funk-O-Metal Carpet Ride. Signed to Atco by former Kerrang! scribe turned A&R man Derek Oliver, the band took Europe and the U.K. by storm with their extremely funky retro-hard rock sound and gaudy psychedelic look. Producer du jour Bob Rock was brought in to remix the album and record some new tracks prior to release stateside. But while the video for "All Lips N' Hips" was actually placed in daytime rotation by MTV, sales never really took off.
1992's disappointing Groovus Maximus failed to meet fan and critical expectations, and though amicable, the departure of Santunione and Sivegall proved another blow. Guitarist Martin Thomander and drummer Thomas Broman were brought in to replace them prior to the band's next tour, which included a few European festival appearances supporting Metallica. But Electric Boys had lost serious momentum, and were eventually dropped by Atco. Released by independent Music for Nations in 1994, their third effort, Freewheelin', played it safe with pretty straightforward hard rock, but this only seemed to accelerate their descent. Following the cancellation of a planned U.K. tour in support of King's X, the band decided to call it quits and played a final gig in their hometown of Stockholm. Conny Bloom would remain active as a sometime solo artist and eventually joined former Wildhearts main man Ginger in the short-lived Silver Ginger 5.