The Healing of Harms is one part testimony and one part inspiration to those who are alone. It also speaks to those facing insurmountable odds and needing answers after falling in harms way. Its an album that exposes pride, gossip, guilt, and shame and then reciprocates by answering it with humility, love, forgiveness and hope.
Birthed from the small music-starved town of Eustis, Florida, just outside Orlando, this debut record is the culmination of five years playing shows and waiting patiently for the right opportunity. But this project would not have been possible without the EP they released two years prior appropriately titled On The Subject of Moving Forward. That project is what led them to sign with Flicker Records (Pillar, Kids in the Way), who will release the bands first national album.
A mutual love for bands like The Juliana Theory, Zao, Def Leppard, and Skid Row was their initial point of connection musically, but the bands members soon found that their similarities ended there. They each had a different idea about how the music should take shape. While most bands find musical compromise difficult, Firefights sound, as well as its resiliency, was established in democracy. The band has found that sharing ideas and control is its success secret. Lead vocalist Dawn Richardson explains, It works best when you put the group goal above the individual. You can hear it in our music. We dont sound like much else out there right now because we all come from different places, and our sound meets somewhere in the middle. The remainder of the band agrees, comprising Wendy Drennen (bass), Glenn Drennen (guitar), Justin Cox (guitar, background vocals) and Phee Shorb (drums).
Hints of emo-core, modern rock, and progressive metal permeate the record and its style as defined by Fireflight. This is all wrapped in a package tied together with soaring vocals and memorable melodies. However, Fireflight wants its music and vision to be emphasized beyond themselves, doing so mainly through lyrics.
Richardsons lyrics are selfless and direct, a reflection of the bands mission as a whole. On Myself, she vocalizes the need for an individual to deny their own will, You woke me up and made me learn to love more than myself / You took my hand before I knew there was more than myself. On You Decide she emphasizes that faith is not based on a relationshipwith others but with God; Fiction and reality collide / Faceless and so busted up inside / Youve been searching / Youve been crying out / Will you be destroyed by all your doubt?
Its You additionally delves deep into the emotional hole that exists in many young people. Instead of basing self-image on a comparison to media imagery that pushes immodesty, sex and outer beauty, it pushes the listener to distance themselves from pop-cultural reference points as a whole, I wish that I could break all the mirrors in my mind / The ones that lie to me and steal away my pride. It is these topics that Fireflight, Dawn and Wendy especially, hope to convey to its female listeners. Issues of self-worth, respect and inner-beauty are all themes that resonate in the hearts of Fireflight. Dawn explains, We meet so many young women and teenage girls that feel insecure about who they are on the outside. We want to remind them that they are Gods beautiful creation and that He has a plan for their lives. There is humility present in much of the lyrical content that is both needed and refreshing.
Having waited patiently since 1999, the band is now preparing to make a run at national recognition and a larger platform to share its message. Fireflight has already shared the stage with Skillet, Kutless, Emery, Anberlin, and Disciple to name a few. An upcoming national tour with labelmate Kids in the Way and appearances at 12 major Christian music festivals this summer are just a hint of what is to come. And though its goals are large, the band is committed to remaining unified no matter what. The obstacles and many years invested have prepared Fireflight to keep its head grounded and to continue to make music that inspires, mends, and revitalizes.
Finally, the doors are opening, says Richardson. It really feels like God has given us these opportunities so that we can help reach those who are wounded, those who need this music. Fireflight wants to write music that people can feel, make records that are universal enough to stand the test of time, and stay genuine and honest or die trying.