Between Shadow And Solace

A song can be a powerful thing.
This is especially true for the songs of Ignite the Fire. And, their new EP, Between Shadow And Solace, is no different with its range of music and emotions from the hard-hitting, metal-edged defiance of Lazarus to the melodic and achingly beautiful Echoes.
"There are six different songs on this album and six different emotions," says guitarist Mark Quinn of the songs Shadow (intro), Victim of Shame, Lazarus, Anchor, Echoes and Solace.
"This whole EP is about being human, what it means to be human," says Caelan Gregory, drummer and lyricist. "We don't want to just connect with listeners on a musical level, but an emotional one as well, and in doing that we hope to connect with people in a real and significant way."
Between Shadow And Solace is already making its mark as many fans will attest after hearing the new music played live. So much so that there are those who have made the commitment to permanently ink themselves with tattoos of the musical notes for the song Echoes, which appears to be one of the favorites off the new EP.
"I just like the way it makes me feels," says Gina Baker of Ohio, who along with her friend got matching tattoos for Echoes. "It's sad yet hopeful. And, I love the band."
I fear that I'm right, but I pray that I'm wrong. I'll echo this silence, and I won't let go. You left me uncertain, don't leave me alone. I'll search through the darkness, and I won't let go. ~Echoes.
Then there are those who have taken such a liking to the song that they were demanding a copy of it before its release. "A friend of a friend heard them perform it live and came to me and asked for a copy since I was the producer," says Jeremy Dove of Darkesville Studios in Winchester, VA, where the EP was recorded. He declined, telling her good naturedly, "You know doctor-patient privilege? Well it's like that."
But she has remained relentless. "She was contacting me about once a week, asking, 'Is it out yet? Is it out yet?'" Adding, "I know what the song is about because the band told me when we were recording it. But she has taken her own interpretation from it and it is powerful and unique for her."
For Rocky Marr, it was the song Lazarus that offered comfort and inspiration. "This song came into my life not once, but twice, during painful and life-altering moments," says Marr.
The first time, he says, it was while he was watching the band play acoustically. "During a private party at my house where they were playing I received a phone call from my father's nursing home to indicate that he had begun the dying process and would not be with us much longer," says Marr. "As I listened to the band perform the song that night, it became to me an anthem of hope and strength for my father as he passed, but also for me as I remembered him upon his passing."
Bring to life, don't let go. Holding on, I'll follow. Crawling back from the edge, I will rise from the dead. Through the darkest shadows I'll expose the unknown. At the end I begin, I will rise from the dead. ~Lazarus
Then only five months after his father's passing, "I would face my own 'rise from the dead' challenge," he says. "I suffered a heart attack. I was fortunate to receive excellent care and have made a full recovery, but the song would once again speak to me. It is a song of strength and recovery in the face of life-changing adversity."
And that for the band is what it is all about. "We really want people to listen to the message," says Nelson. "Really listen to the words because they are yours. They came from us and they mean something to us but it's completely up to you what it is going to mean to you."
"Any good song will relate to any person," adds Dove, who has produced not only Between Shadow And Solace, but the band's earlier EP, Trial and Triumph, at his Darkesville Studios. "And to me these songs can do that."
These "good" songs are in many ways a reflection of the consistent cohesiveness of the band, which has primarily remained the same since it began in 2010. "Something that is not all that common," says Quinn. Ignite the Fire was co-founded by Gregory and Quinn, who were both in high school at the time. Gurecki with his soaring vocals joined shortly after and was soon joined by Nelson, the band's resident "unclean" vocalist. And while choosing a favorite song from Between Shadow And Solace, is like "picking your favorite child," says Quinn, there are band members who are drawn to particular songs.
Anchor, for example. "It's so aggressive. It's so fast. It's fun and fast," says Nelson. "I think it is the most mature song we've ever written."
I'm pulled by your anchor, I'm losing control. Fighting in anguish, just leave me alone. I tried to breathe you in, you take my breath away. Cast aside, overthrown, anchored I sink below. ~Anchor.
As a producer, Dove is drawn to it as well. "It has this driving, encapsulating riff that keeps your head spinning while listing to the vocals," he says. "When they get to this break, it just stops, and there's this atmosphere and feeling with just Jack there. Then it just comes back in. You've already heard the chorus, but when it comes back into the chorus again it feels different."
Gurecki says he is most keen for Victim of Shame. "Every time we do a new project I'm looking to do something a little different," says Gurecki. "I love when we push the envelope. This one is the first song we've ever done that uses triplets as a rhythm. And, I love the melody of the chorus... it's the song I can push my vocals the furthest with."
The anger inside is just a disease. The fear in your eyes is what they believe, for now. ~Victim of Shame.
But whatever song is the favorite, they are all well-loved and well-intended by the band for its audience.
"The title speaks for itself, Between Shadow And Solace," says Quinn. "We are writing about battling the darkness but also about the hope that is there. You see that in the world we live in. There's this feeling of dread and darkness around us but also there's hope."
So, lay me down inside of your hands. And help me to see all that we are. Please show me now how shadows give way and solace remains in what we become. These broken pieces rearranged and defined. ~Solace
A message they feel is important to convey for those struggling to navigate an ever-changing and constantly challenging world.
"We are really hammering out what we feel needs to be said," says Smith. "We want people to know that it's okay to not be okay. People do mess up. People do slip up. But it's okay. It's okay to be human. We are all human."

Lineup

Jack Gurecki - Vocals
Mark Quinn - Guitar
Michael Nelson - Guitar
Holly Smith - Bass
Caelan Gregory - Drums