Smoke Or Fire

Above The City (Fat)
by Ewan Wadharmi

Fire. Definitely fire. Now residing in the current epicenter of American punk, Richmond, VA, Smoke Or Fire are Bostonians by birth, but exhibit the spirit of Chicago with their political brand of melodic punk. Thrilling energy and singable tunes catchier than Asian bird flu support outspoken jabs like “Are you the person they sent to save me?/ because I don’t want to be saved/ killing is easy/ when you can’t see faces/ and you don’t have to dig graves.” Everything about them screams Naked Raygun, including singer Joe McMahon’s tethered scream. Fans of Lagwagon will also have reason to investigate the chunky riffing and unforgivable drum abuse that give McMahon plenty of canvas to paint on. Their relentless touring is reflected in geographically-specific tunes “California’s Burning,” “Delawhere,” and “Goodbye to Boston.” A very impressive debut, and a lot of hope for the future, assuming the future isn’t burnt to hell.
(www.fatwreck.com)