FIRE IN THE RADIO

Lineup:
Rich Carbone [vox, guitar]
Ed Olsen [bass]
Jonathan Miller [vox, guitar]
Adam Caldwell [drums]

Fire in the Radio formed as a young band in the early 2000s in State College, Pennsylvania. The band’s debut record, “Red Static Action,” was initially recorded as a demo three weeks after the band was together. While the demos were raw, their visceral nature connected with those who heard it and ultimately convinced the band to release the demos as their initial offering. The record was a return to straight forward indie rock yielding comparisons to Superchunk, Dinosaur Jr., and the Texas is the Reason. Following the release, the band toured throughout the east extensively, and gained a strong and loyal following. In the reviews that followed, most noted that the record showed significant promise and their follow-up was eagerly anticipated (“What I really get from Fire in the Radio’s debut album is the sense that this band is young and has an immense amount of talent. Just listen to those first two tracks. They’re not picking up emo cliches and running with them, but they are making powerful and emotional rock songs that really get me excited….Such a thing usually bodes incredibly well for the band’s next release, and I know I’ll be eagerly anticipating it – that is, if they’re not signed to some major label who likes the other half of the album – Delusions of Adequacy). The follow-up record, however, did not initially come to pass, as the band went on hiatus after its members moved to different parts of the Country. Ed Olsen went on to sing in the Philly hardcore band Go For The Throat and continued to play with Rich Carbone in Kill the Signal. The two remaining members, Adam Caldwell and Jon Miller, moved to California and formed The Little Heroes.

In the latter part of 2010, members of the band were sent a posthumous review of their record by the blog Willfully Obscure. The review noted that the band “bridged the gap between indie-rock and emo, putting them in league with contemporaries The Get Up Kids, Juliana Theory, and..Superchunk.” It went on to state that while “Red Static Action may not have been particularly seismic..it wielded the potential for a much more incendiary follow-up album – one that sadly never came to pass, for reasons unknown…” The review began a further discussion between the band to make good on the promise the initial record presented. By this time, Ed and Rich were living in the Philadelphia area, Adam had moved to Richmond, Virgina, and Jon was still in California.

In 2012, the band reunited in Richmond to record new demos. The following year, they spent time at Inner Ear studios in Washington, DC, with engineer Don Zientera (Fugazi, Jawbox) further demoing the record. Thereafter, the band continued to exchange demos via the internet. In the summer of 2014, the band returned to Miner Street Studios in Philadelphia (The Menzingers, Restorations) with producer Thom Flowers (Lagwagon, Bad Astronaut, The Ataris) to record their second full-length record. The record, which has yet to be titled, fulfills the promise the band initially displayed. It is set for release in early 2015.