Flags is a self-described band of homies. Formed out of organic connections in Austin’s music scene, this punk rock group of “guitar nerds” places fun at the forefront. I joined them in their tiny and loud rehearsal space in January as they prepared to embark on tour with Vermont’s Thus Love.
Everything Flags does is powered by friendship, community, and a mutual love for guitars. Their origin story is a series of happy accidents—somehow leading them to become an all-Rickenbacker band.
A Band of Homies Assembles
Drummer Carson Braymer was the nexus that brought the members of Flags together. It started with his longtime friendship with guitarist and vocalist Reid Haynie, who he met during high school in Mississippi.
“Reid and I have known each other for a really, really long time,” Carson explains. “We went to high school together back in Mississippi. So we played music together for a long time.”
When Reid moved to Austin, he brought with him a collection of raw punk rock songs for a project called Butt Head, which Carson wanted to play drums on, “really, really bad.”
Enter Cait McCoy, who now splits guitar and vocal duties with Reid in Flags.
“One day I was meeting up with Cait to sell her a bag of weed,” Carson recalls. “We were really good Instagram homies. She did a demo for Earthquaker Devices, the effects pedals. So I followed her on Instagram years ago and knew her literally because of the internet.”
One day, Cait messaged Carson about moving to Austin. Soon, they crossed paths at a show.
Butt Head Sessions
“So when I went to sell that bag of weed,” Carson says, “I was like, hey, you should come jam. You should come play guitar in this band called Butt Head.”
“And I was like, sold,” Cait laughs. “Say no more.”
The three met up to jam, but they were missing a key ingredient: a bass player. Enter Flags bassist Lucy Weatherby.
One day, Carson and Reid went to the old Strait Music location off Ben White and Lamar, where Lucy was working. Carson and Lucy had met while working at Lucky Brand Jeans.
“We worked retail together,” Lucy laughs. “At the fucking Domain.”
“When we worked together, we always talked about music and guitar shit,” Carson recalls. “So I knew she was into cool stuff. I knew that Lucy wasn’t like a bass player, bass player, because I’d seen her shred a lot of guitar. But I was like, if you want to fuck around with bass, it’d be really, really fun. You’d probably fucking kill it.”
Lucy came and jammed, and it was clear that they had the right lineup.
“We were like, this is the fucking move,” Carson says.
Butt Head Evolves: Flags is Born
After jamming on Reid’s Butt Head songs, they decided it would be more fun to just write new songs.
“When Cait came in to jam, it was like, we should just write music,” Reid says. “It was kind of lame being like, ooh, and then the verse goes to this part. And it does this thing. She could obviously rip.”
“It was more fun to have a complete fresh start,” Carson says.
An All-Rickenbacker Band
Lucy had never played bass before, and didn’t own a bass at the time.
“And so I showed up to practice with a Rickenbacker,” Lucy says. “I was like, OK, I need a cool bass. I work at a guitar store. I’ve got to get a fucking cool bass.“
“Mission accomplished,” Reid says.
Lucy texted Carson to say that she got the Rickenbacker. Cait has a Rickenbacker.
“It was meant to be,” Lucy says.
At the time, Reid was playing a Fender Jazzmaster, but once Lucy joined, they were two-thirds of a Rickenbacker band.
“It became apparent that we needed to be an all-Rick band. I sold the Jazzmaster, and an amp. And we got there. Now we’re all Ricks.”
“The cool thing is, sure, making music is a priority, but I think having fun is the top priority,” Cait says. “We are all pals, and that makes everything much more fun.”
“It’s homies-first kind of band,” Carson says, explaining how there is never pressure between them about rescheduling practices or anything that might come up. “I appreciate this band a lot in that we’ve got that kind of relationship with each other.”
“It’s just four best buddies,” Reid says.
Four Best Buddies Write Songs Together
Since they are such good friends, and all four of them are guitar players at heart, the songwriting process becomes collaborative and often serendipitous.
“We jam a little bit at every practice,” Reid explains. “And often we’ll have something that’ll be apparent to everybody. It’s like, OK, this should be the next thing that we write.“
“Usually one of us brings a weird guitar riff to the table,” Cait explains.
Their newest track, yet-to-be-titled or released, is one that the band feels is the most “Flags” song to date.
“This song’s been completely collaborative,” Cait explains. “We both accidentally wrote riffs in the same key that work together.”
Flags keeps their recordings tight, dropping all the fluff and keeping only what is needed. This leads to short, snappy songs in the vein of classic punk bands like the B-52s.
“I think there’s a beauty in being like I said it, it’s done,” Cait says. “Leave them wanting more.”
“It’s not about making them short,” Carson says. “It’s to make them as to the point as possible. Cut the fluff, have it be nice and lean.”
“We all listen to a lot of different music,” Reid says. “But this is the center of the venn diagram. Everybody’s specific influences coming into the room.”
Austin’s “Incestuous” Music Scene
Like many Austin musicians, the members of Flags all play in other bands, which Flags calls “incest” in the local scene. Cait is in CorMae, Reid and Carson play in Exotic Fruitica, and Lucy plays with Lauren Lakis. Those bands also share other members, showcasing just how deep this incest runs.
“Everyone does that in Austin,” Lucy says. “I feel like it’s weird to only be in one band. I mean, they’re out there. But I think a large percentage of Austin musicians are in multiple bands.”
“I feel like most musicians who aren’t even like working musicians have a bunch of projects,” Carson says.
Of course, everybody is hoping one of their projects will blow up.
“Roll the dice, man,” Carson says.
“Or until it just runs its course, because that happens too,” Cait says.
Keeping It In The Family
In addition to playing in other local bands, Flags enlists fellow Austinites for recording, vinyl pressing, and more. They recorded their latest EP, Bummer Summer, with Jonas Wilson of Mr. Pink Records, an all-tape label based in Austin.
Jonas was yet another Carson connection, this time through Exotic Fruitica.
“Big surprise,” Lucy says. “Carson knows everyone.”
“He said something that really stuck with me,” Carson says. “There was one take where it just didn’t feel great. And he was like, look, dude, I hear you. But did it sound good? And I’m like, god, I know it’s not good. But it did sound good. Sometimes it might not feel perfect, but that doesn’t mean that it didn’t sound really good.”
Bleached Records (run by Jon French of Exotic Fruitica) pressed the 7-inch in Austin.
What’s Next For Flags?
Flags goes on tour with Thus Love Feb 7-12, starting in Las Vegas, with an Austin date at Mohawk on Feb 11th. They’ve got their new song dialed in, and are excited to take it on the road. Afterwards, they plan to keep releasing singles and EPs, taking time this year to be creative and come up with more new material.
As for a full-length album—they hope to get there one day, with financial support from a label. For now, they’re focused on having fun, writing songs, and seeing where the road takes them.
“Smoke em if you got ’em,” Reid closes.