NASHVILLE, TN – Sept. 29, 2010 – Premiere modern rock band Fireflight kicked off the opening dates of its anticipated “For Those Who Wait – The Tour” this past weekend with crowd-rousing performances in Richlands, VA (Sept. 23), Huntington, WV (Sept. 24) and Wilkesboro, NC (Sept. 26). Also featuring urban/hip-hop trend-setters Group 1 Crew and Canadian rockers Manic Drive, the 30+ city tour will continue across the U.S. from late September through early November before wrapping up in Venice, FL on Nov. 7.
Fireflight debuted nationally with 2006’s The Healing of Harms, producing two No. 1 rock singles with “You Decide” and “Waiting.” For nearly a decade, the band has remained tireless road warriors on the concert circuit averaging 140 shows a year. Fireflight is: Dawn Michele, lead vocals; Justin Cox, guitar; Glenn Drennen, guitar; Wendy Drennen, bass; and Phee Shorb, drums.
Front and center? One Dawn Michele. With all due respect to exceptional peers such as Paramore and Evanescence, not all female lead singers are created equal. Armed with an arresting voice that's drawn comparisons to Joan Jett and The Pretenders’ Chrissy Hynde, Dawn actually makes authoritative gut-rock sound beautiful. And her bandmates? With her every step of the way and, at times, elevating the proceedings. From the moment Fireflight’s new album hits speakers, one thing’s for sure: This is 2010.
An epic journey? In more ways than one. In fact, Fireflight’s first three albums have been a thematic travelogue of sorts. While the band’s debut emphasized resiliency amidst hardship, Unbreakable focused on emerging victorious beyond such difficulty. And For Those Who Wait? “This album is a maturation in understanding that sometimes you don’t appreciate why you’re on the path that you’re are,” Dawn explains. “A lot of times, we get bogged down thinking about things that we’re waiting for. As soon as I get my bills paid, then things are going to be great. As soon as my family member’s not sick anymore, then things are going to be a lot better. And when we do that, we totally miss out on what’s happening in-between now and our goal. God has times of waiting in our lives because He has something for us to learn. Hard things that happen, that throw us off of our plan, become the most important things in our lives because God will take them and use them to shape our character and who we are.”
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“We pray earnestly that God will give us good songs that will be able to help people,” she says. “And He’s come through for us, especially in our weakest moments. That’s when we’ve really gotten the best stuff.” This awareness of God’s magnificence amidst personal weakness is a defining trait for Fireflight. It not only frames the band’s songwriting, it empowers Fireflight’s rejection of “rock star” entitlement and enables genuine relationships between the group and countless fans. “We work collectively as a band to answer every MySpace and ShoutLife question we get,” says the lead singer. “We believe first and foremost the Christian faith is relational. We try to show people God’s love, and you just can’t do that unless you care about them.” This manifests itself most directly as the band proactively interacts and prays with fans who “need to talk” after concerts.
See the 'For Those Who Wait' Tour with the SOULFEST Fall Concert Series:
Fri, October 22 in Shrewsbury, MA
Photos by Scott Linscott.
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