| CD REVIEW The Fire |
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Band : The Fire I’ve no idea when exactly this Italian “Punk Rock” act was formed, because info about that is simply missing from any of the sources where I usually find my needs! Info I DID find includes such facts as 1) band has played over 170 gigs to date…participated in the Eastpack Rock Fest tour, and have travelled through Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Benelux, and Kroatia…have been main support to Misfits and Lagwagon, have been at Belgium’s PukkelPop festival; 2) ”Emily” was the band’s first single…it’s video hit MTVItaly and Rock-TV (on Rotation) in January 2007 and reached the #3 position in the public voting section in only 4 weeks’ time…together with the videos for the track “Smalltown Boy” (cover version of the 1984 Bronski Beat hit song) it’s had over ½ million hits at MySpace; 3) band was main support to Kaizer Chiefs at the 3rd Tattoo Convention in Frankfurt; 4) in February 2009 the band got #3 position in the annual poll organized by Rocksound Magazine in the categories “Best Debut Album”, “Best Italian Band”, and “Best Italian Album”; 5) at the band’s MySpace page, you’ll find the line-up consisting of singer/ guitarists Olly & Filippo Dallinfierno (no indication as to whom does the leads, and whom backs up), guitarist Lou Castagnaro, bassist Pelo, and drummer Alecs; in 2006, band released debut album Loverdrive…it was followed by the Electro Cabaret EP in April 2009, which was made available only at the band’s gigs and through their merchandize e-mail address. Fans could get the EP for free (or at mailing costs) and add whatever they wanted themselves! The Fire’s music, as mentioned above, is a “Punk Rock” of kinds! Instrumentally, they sound like The Offspring or, in other words, like a very good Rock act with elements from both Punk and Metal. The singer has a very nice mid-high pitched voice with a charming hoarseness and nasality at the same time…in fact, if I hadn’t known better, I might’ve though he was German! The thing that differs this band from your “normal” Punk band, is the fact that the lyrics all are love songs of sorts, and have no socio-political criticisms what-so-ever! Notable, besides the fact that their own songs are darn nice to start with, is what the band did with the two covers! Obviously, someone’s playing keyboards (synths) in the Bronsky Beat cover (and that same person may also be playing the piano during “Sweet Enemy”), which is featured on this album as 2nd bonus track. Off the new album the band only posted “Bohemian Burlesque” at myspace.com/thefirerock, but there’s also the Loverdrive version of bonus track “Emily”, two tracks off the Electro Cabater EP, and two further tracks off the first album! Listen to those tracks, and translate those to a fuller sound and a more explosive production…and you get what the band sounds like today! Great stuff! 90/100 Tony. |