The Fire Tonight’s show in Anderson, SC Saturday brings them back to their roots in a lot of ways. None of the current members live in the same town anymore so the live performance aspect of being in a band for them has become few and far between. But after line up changes, a full length album, and multiple EP’s the band is truly happy with where they are today.

Anderson, SC is like their first or second home. It’s where founding members Collin Derrick and Stephen Russ met while they were in school there. It’s also where they recorded their latest EP …And Then You Were Gone. An EP that they believe captures the full sound of who The Fire Tonight is, even thought it almost ended the band in the process.

“Getting this EP out took forever, because it is extremely personal for all of us” said Russ, drummer of The Fire Tonight. “And the thing that really kept us going is that we knew we needed to do it, even if it was the hardest thing we had ever done musically.”

Over time things changed in many ways in The Fire Tonight camp. Early on they focused on touring and playing shows all over the Southeast. Their first full length album was cut and ready for radio, something in retrospect might not have been exactly who they were.

“I can say with full faith that I can’t stand our first album at all, but I think we’ve really come along since then at least in, doing what we do which is generally melodramatic art rock” said Russ. “We’ve all had a lot of experiences in music outside of the band, Collin teaches recording, I interview musicians, Jesse is in school for music. We also became less concerned about doing what we thought people wanted. You know, “oh we need a slow song, oh we need another rocker” that kind of thing.”

So on their last EP they recorded it Mono, just because it was something they wanted to do and something that they enjoyed bands like The Beatles doing. They also joke that they wanted to beat The Restoration to the punch. For the average listener, it’s a recording nuance that no one will notice, but for them it was a challenge and something they cared about.

As The Fire Tonight settle into their lives away from rock n roll, they’ve figured out more what they want to do. And that’s create music they care about, and to enjoy the live shows they do play more than ever.

In talking about their past releases and the fans relationship to the music Russ says “But music is forever. It’s what people make of it.”

The Fire Tonight will be opening for The Restoration in Anderson, SC Saturday Jan 21 at McGee’s Irish Pub. The show is free and starts at 8 PM.

The fine folks at Rose and Arrow Records in Myrtle Beach celebrate their first release just in time for the holiday season.  The freshman release features 12 artists from around South Carolina including Scene SC favorites American Gun, The Restoration, Magnetic Flowers, Attalaya, The Fire Tonight and Steven Fiore.  I’m sure that we’ll find some future favorite artists on the new album.

The album features both original songs and covers of Christmas traditionals.  Catch the spirit today.

Go to Bandcamp and buy it today!

EP RELEASE

June 3rd

New Brookland Tavern

with The Private Life of David Reed and Deleveled

The Fire Tonight has released the first single “Sabotage Me” off their new EP for free download on Bandcamp.  With their EP Release only weeks away, The Fire Tonight is officially back from their break and ready to rock again this summer.

The new single sounds more all out rock along the lines of their previous songs like “Canon Canvas”  and has more of an early 90′s alt rock flair. “Sabotage Me” sounds like a mash-up of Muse, Smashing Pumpkins and Jump Little Children, who are all obvious influences of the band.  The EP will surely push the heavy in a lot of the same ways.

7 Q’s with The Fire Tonight

The Fire Tonight have been off the radar since July of last year, so we decided to catch up with them about where they have been.  They will be warming up the crowd Saturday March 27th at The Elbow Room for Treadmill Trackstar’s CD release party.

1) The Fire Tonight has sort of dropped off the radar lately. Where did you go?

It’s hard to believe we’ll be playing our own music in Columbia for the first time since July! Being in a band that toured like we did costs a lot of money and has very little immediate return. That coupled with growing weary of the old material really made playing shows more of a chore than anything else, so we knew it was time to step back for a little while and work on some other projects. Fortunately, writing and recording our EP became one of those projects.

2) We’ve heard you’ve been working on a new EP of your own. When is it due out and how is it going to be different from No One is Fine?

If I had to guess, I’d say it will be out sometime in May. Two of the songs are almost fully mixed, while we are still recording parts for the other two. Strange how that worked out. It will be a digital release, which means we are either cutting edge or poor. You be the judge.

Our whole approach is different this time around, and we actually know how to record this time! That helps. When we were debating over whether to do another record we ultimately decided to do this one for the absolute fun of it. As a result the atmosphere is a little more lighthearted on the whole, but the songs really bring it and are much more extreme production-wise. For example one of the tracks is essentially an ode to classic rock complete with obnoxious Queen a capella section.

In the spirit of good times we also decided to have some of the best Columbia musicians we’ve met come in and do guest spots on three of the four tracks. That experience alone was worth it to get a different perspective on the songs, and I can promise that their additions are ridiculously great.

3) While Stephen and Collin have been working on The Restorations new album, what has Jamie been up to?

Collin and I have been recording a boat load of artists and loving it, it’s just such a different aspect of music than being in a band. We’ve got two projects (The Restoration!) coming out in April and a bunch more on the way (check out our Facebook for details). Jamie has taken up guitaring with local cover act Under the Sun. I think he has made more money in three months than our band made in three years.

4) The Fire Tonight has 3 members based out of 3 different music
scenes. Which do you think is the most thriving and what city that isn’t home do you enjoy to play the most?

I hope I’m not sucking up if I say Columbia. While it may not have a lot of venues right now it’s got some of the best bands we’ve ever played with and a huge variety of talent. There’s a reason why we call it “home.” We also get a kick out of playing in Charlotte. Our touring bassist, Justin, knows every person in the city and we’ve made some great friends there. There are a lot of really fun venues there from the classic Milestone, to that pirate-themed venue, to the beer coffeeshop the Evening Muse, the overly hot Tremont, and more. It’s always interesting and rarely disappointing.

5) Your drummer Stephen Russ used to write some kick ass articles for Scene SC. What happened to him? Did David finally cut him? Literally cut him.

I took some time off to write a Master’s thesis so I can finally be an adult. Boring I know. I’ll be back writing more soon so BACK OFF DAVID.

6) How do you balance your personal life with your life in the band?

We are all good friends so I think the band is just another part of our personal life. Living in different cities and not seeing each other helps a lot with that though. When we are playing a lot we know that the week is the time to be adults and the weekend is the time to live out our teenage rock star dreams. It also helps that most of our band arguments are over the phone or over e-mail, no doubt we would have all killed each other by now if we all lived in the same place.

7) Have y’all tracked down a bass player yet or are you just gonna stick with one of those electronic bass machines?

Our good friend (with an awesome name) Jesse James contributed all the bass lines on the EP. He did our summer tour with us and we really loved his style for these new songs. Unfortunately he is a busy college kid who still has delusions of doing something with his life. We’ll break him of it yet! Until then Justin will continue to fill in, all the while hoping the day comes when we don’t ever call him again. Seriously though, if people love this EP we are going to do a lot more shows and then we’ll actually get a real live bassist on our side. It’s been way too long.

The Restoration Studio Journals – Part 1 – By Daniel Machado

[For more information on the photograph above, click here]

“The Lynching” is the song that will close The Restoration’s debut album and bring an end to my story of the Vale family. As a writer, it’s a song that has taken me on a grim and reflective journey deep into the heart of my home town’s racist past (and present – more details in part 2). As a band member, it’s a song that seems to carry a dark aura (fittingly so), spurring more friction and dispute than I’ve ever experienced recording an album. But I’m getting ahead of myself…

The adventure of recording The Restoration’s debut album officially began with intensive rehearsals in Lexington, SC’s muggy July heat. The rhythm instruments would be recorded first in Nashville, the lead instruments and vocals later in Lexington. As our Nashville deadline loomed nearer and nearer, Adam Corbett (bass/vocals), Eddie Lord (drums/bass) and myself (vocals/banjo/guitar) drilled familiar songs and struggled through new ones that were still being written. For me, those weeks of furious writing and rehearsing were bittersweet – clashing feelings of excitement and anxiety as I attempted to pen a strong beginning and ending to the fictional narrative that had become such a cherished part of my own life. “The Lynching”, which I finished writing last, was particularly difficult to learn and caused some of the first serious stress in the rehearsals, forcing us to wonder if we’d actually be able to pull off the live recording technique we were planning.

Our last rehearsal was attended by the album’s head engineer Collin Derrick and producer Stephen Russ. We shared notes and discussed our excitement and fears. Stephen grinned as he promised to get an amazing album out of us, whatever it took – warning that we would all hate him by the end of the process. Finally, with no time to spare, the pre-production work was done and I could be completely excited about the coming trip to “Music City”, where the actual recording would begin.

The road trip up was filled with excited talk, essential nostalgic music and Eddie’s always unexpected moving-vehicle window acrobatics. When we arrived at our beds the night before our first recording day, Adam and Eddie led Collin, Stephen and I in an impromptu jam session that began the digression of our collective sense of humor into that of a middle school boy – a mode we would retain for the duration of the trip.

Middle Tennessee State University’s recording studios were amazing: spacious, inspiring, full of character and creative energy. The control room featured a 20-foot ceiling, a gigantic sound board, beautiful wooden sound treatment and a layout like the bridge of the SS Enterprise. There was a dingy white recliner in the back of the room that Stephen immediately claimed and promised to lay in all week while crushing our spirits with endless commands of “this time do it without sucking”. We felt we could stay in there forever as we discussed the work to come and made loose plans for our visit to downtown Nashville during our down time. “Down time?” Stephen asked. “That will depend on how badly you play your instruments”. For the next few days, Adam, Eddie and I spent most of our time in three separate rooms, looking at each other through thick glass windows as we played our way through the long and detailed production list – Stephen always there to remind us that the Nashville studio musicians were waiting in the wings to replace us.

A few 16-hour days later – we had finished tracking drums, bass, guitar and banjo for 8 songs. We even had some spare time to record Collin performing a bit of Wurlitzer on “Constance”. We were amazingly on schedule and had managed to track almost everything live, “pre-1970s-style” (recording all the rhythm instruments simultaneously). In the end, despite all of Stephen’s threats of production tyranny, he actually turned out to be one of the most diplomatic, clearheaded and therapeutic creative directors I’ve encountered. He really pulled one over on us; keeping us at our musical best while always maintaining an atmosphere of humor and hilarity. Meanwhile, Collin seemed to have thought of every recording detail ahead of time; engineering, for example, the most elaborate arrangement of drum mics I’ve ever seen – capturing the “big-yet-vintage” drum sound we were hoping for, right out of the gate.

Despite occasional “Spinal Tap moments” of tension between all of us in the wee hours of the night, there were countless inspiring moments of studio energy. Eddie nailed the drums on “Little Round Shoes” at the end of an exhausting day and had us all smiling with his sweeping bass solo in “Henry’s Letter”. Adam’s new bass lines in “The Lynching” were sick and his new song “Rev. Harper” sounded completely badass. As the band grinned at each other through the glass, we all felt very lucky.

After a trip to downtown Nashville, Jack White’s record shop (it was closed) the Grand Ole Opry (it was too expensive to go inside) and a big group hug, I was suddenly back home, exhausted and missing the recording studio and the guys. I had a great break, enjoyed time with loved ones, played some Wii, and before I knew it we were all back together – this time set up in my old practice room in Lexington. The next week would consist of recording violin, piano and some lead vocals – and would also put “The Lynching” under the production microscope as we all worked to rein in the monster song both lyrically and sonically. As I revised dense lyrical narrative, researched Lexington’s dark, non-fictional history of racial violence and tied up my fictional story’s loose ends, my courage as a writer would be put to the test – and that, friends, is where my adventure picks up next time.

Check out our first post ever a year ago!

When I started this website a year ago, I don’t think I realistically expected it to be where it is today.  After running the website for a couple of months hits were staying steady between 25-50 a day and I was really trying to figure out if it was worth it.  I started the website in late June, because I needed something to do.  Work was slow and I felt like I needed to get more involved in a promising music scene where I thought artists weren’t getting the exposure that they deserved.  What I didn’t imagine was the amount of time it would take up in my life.  Last October/November I was working 50-60 hour weeks at my day job.  Finding time for Scene SC was getting harder than I ever imagined it would be.  It seemed like every time I would be close to thinking about letting the website fade away, something would happen to make me realize people were paying attention.

The first person to say the words that I needed to hear to keep the website going was Mike Rogers of All Get Out in Charlotte, September 5th of last year.  In August I wrote a post about how there is a good and bad side to the music scene in South Carolina and about how some people out there are trying to take advantage of bands.  The post was really harsh, so I pulled it down within in an hour of posting it.  Mike told me that night that he really liked that post and that he reads the website daily.  He even showed it to me on his Google Reader.  At that point I decided to stop worrying about how many hits I was getting a day.  If one or only a handful of people are reading the site and it means something to them, I decided that it was worth it to keep going.

So let’s look at the numbers.

• July 2008 we had 291 unique hits to the site.
• June 2009 we had 3,873 unique visitors to the site.
• About 80% of our hits come from our home-base of Columbia.  We are working on changing that.
• We currently offer over 100 videos of bands including full sets.
• According to my bank account there has been over $3,000 invested in this site including video equipment, hosting fees, banners, getting into shows etc.
• The most hits we ever got in a day was 871
• Our most commented story was The Dino-Mech Vs. Blake Lewis Saga.  The Free-Times broke this.
• 5 of our favorite bands have broken up.
• 885 Twitter Followers
• 338 Posts
• 1,826 Comments
• 1 Full Time Scene SC’er and 4 Part Timers
• Over 200 shows attended.
• We’ve hooked up at least 2 couples
• Made Countless Friends
• Created 1 Music Community

I am going to attempt to make a list of people to Thank that really helped me with this website and it being where it is today.  I know I’ll leave someone important out.

Adam Fogle (Palmetto Scoop)  The site wouldn’t exist without him, My sister Meredith Stringer for editing every post on the website and going to more shows than me, Bentz Kirby, Pat Wall (The Free Times), Our Staff Stephen Russ, Bakari Lebby, Sarah Kobos.  My brother Jeffrey for investing in me and my parents for supporting me.  Our fans from the get go Kevin Morrissey, BK Kennedy, Will Armstrong, Steven Niedringhaus, Seth Birkes and Ben Dimond.  Homemade Genius and Ian!

Specific Bands that have really reached out to us including Marry a Thief, All Get Out, The Fire Tonight, This Machine Is Me, Kill Anties, The Decade,  The Reverie, The Restoration

These people Erich Skelton, Colin Brown, Brandon Kean, Brandon Wilks, Jeffrey McMicken, Nathan Hussey, Grayson Venters,  Mel Washington, Mike Rogers, Chad Rochester,Marcy Bozek WUSC, Otis Taylor at The State, Randy Borawski at WXRY, Austin Crane, Nate Puza, Ashleigh Lancaster, Will Flourance, Daniel Machado, Cayla Fralick, Blake Arambula, Nick Bays, Michael Crawford, Kevin Oliver

Summer Tour ’09: Wrightsville Beach Visit from The Fire Tonight on Vimeo.

The Fire Tonight are currently playing the last 2 dates of their summer tour, but out on the road they found time to record us some hot, steamy, sexy videos.  For the week in racy news, this video fits right up there with the Sanford emails.  Watch this in the privacy of your own room and don’t enjoy this too much.