THE HOLY FIRE: s/t

The Holy Fire

s/t

© 2004 The Holy Fire (656605989723)

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Raw, melodic, powerful rock that blends the ragged songcraft of the Replacements or Afghan Whigs with the sonic depth of Interpol, the Cure or Coldplay.

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The Holy Fire is one of Detroit's most talked about, up-and-coming rock bands. Their quirky songwriting, twilight imagery, and swirling guitars call to mind several things you love about good rock (U2, the Replacements, the Clash, Joy Division, the Cure, Smashing Pumpkins) while remaining entirely original. Their new album is being produced by Michael Ivins of the Flaming Lips but you can catch their indie release here. Check out the clips and the reviews below.

- CD BABY

From The New York Post (2005)--
"A must see."

From Punk Planet (2004)--
"Throughly Impressive... top 5th this issue."

From Delusions of Adequacy, NY (2005)--
"The Holy Fire's recently re-released self-titled EP is one of those oddball discs that beings a ton of bands to mind without actually sounding like a rip-off of any of them. The band pulls an awful lot of depth and layers out of a simple four-person line up (two guitars, bass, drums, and vocals), especially considering the fact that the songs here are nothing more fancy than three-minute rockers.
The band's songs are indeed well-structured, though the urgency of singer/guitarist Sean Hoen's voice often drives the songs to garner a progressively more urgent sentiment as they unfold. The very best thing about The Holy Fire is that these guys are able to put together sounds that create moods and atmospheres that are as important as the song structures themselves (a la The Cure and My Bloody Valentine). There are subtle inferences to so many bands within this EP that even the very first listen of the disc can feel like reuniting with an old familiar friend.
The first minute or so of verse riffing in "Lift Off Message" opens like an ode to Queens of the Stone Age, though the chorus veers off in a more spacey direction; the song eventually winds up on more of a shoegazing bent than anything else. "In Signs" is one of the disc's biggest standouts - a sublimely intense track with stuttering drumming and rhythm guitars just fuzzy enough to give the song an exciting, dirty sound. The lyrically caustic "Sleeping, Screaming Boy" ("Do you need anyone to scream you to sleep anymore?") is a refreshing track, meshing dark vibes with surprisingly catchy stop-and-go rhythm guitars that back a sing-along chorus.
The band shows a dreamy, more ethereal side on "I Heard Your Song," as the guitars ring out in delicate goodness for the first half of the track; the song slowly emotionally crescendos, though, peaking with Hoen's announcement of, "I thought I heard your song when I was falling apart." The guitars on "Outside the Mercury" sound like spaced out Paul Westerberg riffs, which appropriately segues into the lush, intense instrumental closing of "Lehman's Lament."
There's a surprising amount of good stuff packed into these six songs, as The Holy Fire seems to have drawn inspiration from The Afghan Whigs, The Replacements, My Bloody Valentine, and The Cure (amongst others) to create a truly epic-sounding EP. If this recording is any indication of the future, than The Holy Fire's forthcoming 2005 full-length release should be album-of-the-year quality. Recommended to the highest degree."

From Real Detroit Weekly (2004)--
"Hands down this EP redefines what a rock a band from Detroit should sound like. These guys throw out the garage revival and burn the trash can with their dark pop hook and angular rhythms."

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  • Wonderfully haunting
    author: Sarah Lee

    When listening to The Holy Fire, my only regret is that it's not longer. The sound this Michigan band has produced is amazing. The review I read earlier is accurate in that THF does conjure up images of Coldplay, but in an inspirational, not rip-off, sense. The vibe is completely original, and the bold guitar part gives the songs a haunting, addictive sound.

  • Damn Good
    author: Ben Athens

    Great EP. I reccomend this to anyone who likes good melodic rock be it Interpol or REM. The Holy Fire rocks harder than both of those bands, but the material is really pretty at the same time. "I Heard Your Song" is a masterpiece.

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