The Fire Drills Saturday, July 26, 2008 Old Curtis Street Bar Better Than: A fire drill in grade school. A hell of a lot better.
This town is a bit incestuous when it comes to bands, but, as it turns out, that’s a damn good thing. There are a ton of musicians who play spread their talents around a few bands. What’s cool is that you can see these folks in various settings and hear how multi-faceted they are.
Most of the four guys in the Fire Drills also play in other bands. Drummer Rob Burleson (aka #3), fuels d. biddle and Lion Sized with propulsive beats. Guitarist Jason Heller is a driving force in Red Cloud West and played bass in the pop punk outfit Crestfallen more than a decade ago. Singer and guitarist Brandon Richier plays with the Omens and used to play bass in punk band the Volts and bassist Nicholas Anderson used to be in the Risk.
While it was the Fire Drills’ first show, the guys burned through a vigorous set like they’d been playing together for years, delivering one tight and speedy pop punk tune after another. As they state on their MySpace page, “We like to play fast, catchy songs that sting like a motherfucker.” Taking a few cues from Buzzcocks, the Jam, the Clash and other ‘80s punk, the Fire Drills’ were in complete control, man, and yeah, those tunes stung like a motherfucker.
-Jon Solomon
Critic’s Notebook Personal Bias: These guys have the collective experience of playing in eight bands. They couldn’t suck if they tried. Random Detail: They packed a lot of songs into what felt like a brief set. By the Way: The Fire Drills’ three-song EP might be ready by the time the band plays its next gig at hi-dive on Friday, August 22.
