Living Fire is a 4-piece band that has its roots in Sao Paulo, Brazil. They refer to themselves as Street Punk. The band is clearly passionate about their faith, and it shows in everything. Their record “Dead To Skin” is 16 tracks long, so I won’t be able to review every track.
The first song “Almighty Lord” doesn’t leave you waiting, as it begins with shredding guitars, and fast-paced drums. The sound of the band has “punk” written all over it. The vocals are a point where the band can still improve. They are on the edge of ‘unclean’ and are sometimes out of tune. One could argue whether this fits in with the image of punk. However, even if it does fit in with the punk-attitude, vocals should still be pleasurable to listen to.
“Anwer Me” starts with a short bass riff, after which the guitars come in. The guitars seem metal-influenced at some points, especially when they are palm-muted. At the chorus, the vocalists attempt to sing in harmony. I appreciate this effort, however, the main vocalist is out of tune, which kind of negates the beautiful effect that harmonies are supposed to bring.
The fifth song “J.C.H.C.” (which stands for Jesus Christ Hard Core) begins with fast-paced, harmonized guitars to get your interest. The vocalist resorts more to a yelling vocal stye, instead of singing or screaming. One of the plus points in the song, however, are the drums. The drums are always on-point, with some interesting fills. The drums and the guitars are definitely the more interesting elements in the band.
“Not For The Word” starts off with some upbeat guitars. This song seems to have more of a pop-punk or punk rock feel to it, rather than pure punk. Once again, it is definitely because of the drums and the guitars that the song is listenable. The drummer has a good technique, and the guitarists know how to write some good punk guitar riffs. However, after a while, the songs kind of blur together. But perhaps that’s one of the negative aspects of the punk genre.
Overall: I have to admit that the band knows how to write some good punk songs. As soon as the drummer and the guitarists begin to play, you know that you’re in for a punk adventure. As for the vocalist however, he makes the songs less enjoyable. I found that his vocal style just sounded silly, and it was out of tune most of the time.That kind of ruined the experience for me. However, this band definitely has potential, if they work on their vocals and try to add more variation to their songs.
Rating: 5/10
Written by Geert Prins
Tracklist:
1. Almighty Lord 02:22
2. These Words 02:24
3. Answer Me 02:22
4. Eyes Unto The Heavens 02:04
5. J.C.H.C. 02:56
6. Psalm 100 02:10
7. He Brought The Word 02:21
8. Skinheads 4 Christ 03:00
9. Desire Of The Deer 02:18
10. Not For The Word 02:21
11. Indescritivel Amor 03:10
12. I Am An Old-Timer 04:18
13. Let’s Celebrate Christmas 02:46
14. Jesus Is Not Dead [LIVE Bonus Track] 02:39
15. Come With Us [LIVE Bonus Track] 02:48
16. I Want You Lord [LIVE Bonus Track] 04:08
Living Fire is:
Luis Carlos Bass, Vocals
Michel Oliveira Drums
Murillo Xavier Guitar
Wesley Farina Guitar
Albums:
“Jesus Rules” (2012) [review]
“Food for Life Ministry Benefit Compilation” (2013) [review]
“Dead To Sin” (2014}
Record Label: Thumperpunk Records, Aug. 2014
Weblinks: Facebook
Buy the album here:
Holland: First Paradox
Norway: Nordic Mission
Video below: ‘Jesus Is Not Dead’ (live)
Video below: ‘Skinheads 4 Christ’