The Cuban Boys are an English electronic group and production team, currently composed of Skreen B and Ricardo Autobahn; the band formerly also included B.L. Underwood and Jenny McLaren. Their music is characterised by fast electronic beats, heavy reliance upon samples and the repetition of the name drop "the Cuban Boys" in the background of many of their tracks. They achieved success after being aired on John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show with sample-heavydance tracks and cut-ups and were responsible for the UK No. 4 hit single "Cognoscenti vs. Intelligentsia" which was released through EMI.
Band formation
The Cuban Boys formed in 1998 using the Internet as a publicity and collaboration tool from the outset. After a web-only release of an anonymous dance track, "Diophantus Arithmetica", with hints that it was by Noel Gallagher, they recorded "Oh My God! They Killed Kenny", which featured sampled dialogue from South Park combined with "The Bump" by Kenny. This was played extensively by John Peel and took the 6th position in the 1998 Festive Fifty. Following this it was released as the band's first single. A six-track EP, Blueprint for Modernisation, followed. A track from this EP, "Cuban Boy ", went on to be used as the theme music for the BBC sitcom Still Game.
"Cognoscenti vs. Intelligentsia"
The Cuban Boys' next single, "Cognoscenti vs. Intelligentsia" was built on a sample used from "Whistle Stop" by Roger Miller which was featured in the Disney movieRobin Hood. It was first featured online as part of the Hampster Dance song on the website of the same name. The same sample was later used as the basis for the song "Irritating Hamster" by DJ Mavica, then as part of the Cuban Boys' hit. "Cognoscenti vs. Intelligentsia" became a No. 4 hit in the UK in December 1999, following months of speculation and rumours - all of which turned out to be false - that the men behind the Cuban Boys project were in fact Paul Weller and Noel Gallagher of Oasis. Either way, the track received many requests for play on radio, and was heavily hyped as a contender for the Christmas number one spot. Upon release, the single peaked at No. 4 on the Christmas chart, outsold only by Westlife, Cliff Richard, and a re-release of John Lennon's "Imagine". It also took the number one position in the 1999 Festive Fifty. The Cuban Boys co-wrote Atomic Beat Boy with Helen Love, released as a CD single, followed by a 12" remix EP 'Helen Love Vs Cuban Boys: Does Your Heart Go Boom'.
''Eastwood''
In 2000, the Cuban boys released their first album, Eastwood, through EMI but, despite the popularity of "Cognoscenti vs. Intelligentsia", Eastwood suffered poor sales. It was not released in time to capitalise on the success of "Cognoscenti vs. Intelligentsia" and was given limited marketing. Some of the older tunes featuring unauthorised samples had them replaced by obvious imitations. Following the commercial failure of Eastwood, the band were dropped by the label and left with some bitterness, later expressed through their releasing of a 7" cover version of the Sex Pistols' "EMI".
Later work
Commercially, little was heard of the band itself after Eastwood, although they released several limited release singles and EPs. The band focused mainly on Internet downloads, and made much of their early discography available free of charge from their various websites and on Myspace. All the members became involved in other projects and although the Cuban Boys never formally split up, the band ceased to be active around 2001. Its members continued to work together under various names, most notably Spray. Following the death of John Peel in 2004, the Cuban Boys reformed to release a tribute song, "The Nation Needs You", as a free download. Following this, they returned to producing individual tracks, releasing some of them as download-only or limited release CD singles. In 2008, they released their first full album since Eastwood, The Satellite Junkyard on their own record label, House of Beauty. In 2010, the Cuban Boys released a greatest hits compilation of their singles. Art vs Commerce amounted to twenty one tracks, and was released once again on House of Beauty Records. The cover for the CD consists of a booklet with new artwork and a detailed history of the band. Their third album, Machines was released in 2017.
Related acts
Members of the Cuban Boys have also worked on music under various names:
Additionally, the Cuban Boys have featured on alternative compilation albums such as Damaged Goods' Totally Damaged sampler and have done remix work featuring on other bands' singles and EPs, e.g. Helen Love.
