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Fire Mountain
Troy, Alabama, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2009 | INDIE
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[About the Fire Mountain track 'Moving Target']
"The drama ramps up when the organ comes in after the chorus, transforming the song into something thatâs not quite country and not quite Southern rock. Itâs something memorable though." - American Songwriter
Fire Mountain's All Dies Down is my favorite pure alt-country album I've heard in ages. It harkens back to the 90s glory days of the "genre," bringing to mind the guitar pop of The Gin Blossoms, the addictive low-key melodies of Whiskeytown, and the edgy jangle of R.E.M.'s more country-leaning tunes. All Dies Down isn't stuck in that era by any means, but it certainly draws deeply from the well.
Lead singer Perry Brown has an affable growl of a voice that's versatile enough to drive heartland rockers like "Factory Line" or ache through the lush balladry of "Traces." Fire Mountain's sound is a big one - restrained, but full - with ample rhythm and crisp guitar licks. There's also piano (don't worry - it doesn't push them into easy listening territories) and it's a distinctive part of their approach, woven seamlessly into the songs.
The songs are the thing though. As good as Fire Mountain is, what they offer your ears on All Dies Down is much greater than the sum of parts. Love, loss, heartache, regret, finding your place, making changes - in their bio, they say (paraphrasing) this is the lot in life of being in your mid-twenties, but I don't know anyone who can't relate to the universal emotions relayed here.
Brown is a sneaky writer, both of subtle hooks and sharp observations. Lines like "How I hung heavy on your heart" from "Anchor Iron" will slide by you so smoothly, you won't know how it got stuck in your head 3 hours later. "When I kiss you just know that I'm spitting blood" from "Factory Line" is delivered with such simmering spite, you can taste the words.
"Doing Fine" is a prime example of the understated nature of these gently delivered but powerfully received messages. With a palette heavy on grays and muted hues, the gleams of light or glimpses of shadows stand out that much more. The chorus seems simple, but simple like a Hank Williams song, forlorn and insightful.
"Traces" is my personal favorite on the album. It's a hard-hitting ballad with a sweeping chorus (with enchanting harmony vocals provided by Janet Simpson-Templin, of Delicate Cutters/Gum Creek Killers/Wooden Wand/ Teen Getaway) and it wouldn't be out of place soundtracking a somber breakup scene in some teen soap. That's not to say it's generic and schmaltzy⊠okay, it's a little schmaltzy, but it's so damn well-written and just unfair on an emotional level. I would have straight up wept into my cheap beer if this had come out during my college days.
There are a few rockers on the album too, but the heart of the band is most strongly shown in the quieter moments. All Dies Down is thinking man's windows-down music. It's catchy sad-bastard music. It hurts so good.
Highly recommended to fans of: Buffalo Gospel, R.E.M., Reckless Kelly, The Gin Blossoms, Whiskeytown, Ryan Adams, good music. - Farce The Music
Hometown: Troy
Members: Perry Brown, Adam Vinson, Walter Black, Bryan Segraves, Ryan Richburg
Current Album: Of the Dust (2011)
Frontman Perry Brown discusses the bandâs 2009 origination in Troy: âI had written a bunch of songs and had some show opportunities come up, but I needed a band. So I rounded up my friends that played music, and we played those shows and just kept going from there.â Brown had known Richburg since childhood and all five members had become friends before they started playing music together. The band released their Daytrotter session in February and is currently working on their first LP, tentatively scheduled for a fall release. The bandâs melodic roots-rock will appeal to fans of Ryan Adams. - Paste Magazine
Growing up in Georgia just across the river from Alabama, I heard your fair share of regional jokes and felt the general prejudice state lines can create, especially, for some reason, in the South. Duct tape for instance was called Alabama chrome. Werenât they the first to secede from the union? The last to rejoin? Didnât Neil Young lament their backward ways in a song? Didnât Lynyrd Skynyrd strike back in a most uncouth way? Whatever the case, while on the topic of songs and singing them, some folks in Alabama know what theyâre doing: Hank Williams, the father of us all, yep, straight from Alabama. Emmylou Harris, songbird extraordinaire â her too. And now a band called Fire Mountain hailing from Alabama the beautiful seems to be following suit with their first full length album, All Dies Down.
With straightforward songs holding just enough symbolism and pathos, Perry Brown and company (Adam Vinson on percussion, Walter Black on bass guitar, Ryan Richburg on electric guitar, and Bryan Segraves on the keys) plow through a folk rock repertoire reinvented with slight power pop excursions and Brownâs likeable twang. The sounds are tight with enough verve to hold your attention throughout.
The jaunty âBe Your Eyesâ is relatable and friendly with itâs repeated refrain âplease donât let this pain be your eyesâ and its foot tapping beat. With light hearted keyboard and convincing vocals, it rolls through a âCarolina hillsideâ and âcounty linesâ into being a success as the album opener.
In one ear catching moment, the guitar lines in the barroom rocker âFactory Lineâ somehow alternate between Dylanâs âNeighborhood Bullyâ and âHazy Shade of Winterâ by the Bangles. This would be remarkable enough if it werenât the segue for the next song âAt the Seams,â a stunning ballad. The building guitar and keyboard interlude are lovable for any melancholy soul out there. It satisfies the heart with lines like âIâve been hidden further out of sight . . . letting you take all the lightâ; a total winner.
Clever lines accompanied by Steve Winwood piano sounds litter âDoing Fineâ: âItâs hard to hold your hand with these shaking hands thatâs why I drop it all the time. Baby no oneâs doing fine.â âIâve Been Wrongâ is a gentle pleasantry, recalling in its build up the nineties goodness of Buffalo Tomâs âLate at Night.â âWired and Dyingâ is a fun departure with an early Rem, jangly punk presence.
The albumâs ender âMoving Targetâ brings us back to Neil Young with some Crazy Horse guitar moments and sage wording: âJust because itâs burning doesnât mean itâs shining bright.â The lights might have gone out in Georgia; with these boys from Alabama theyâre dimmed just enough for an interesting passage. All Dies Down, full of musical substance and reflections on lifeâs sometimes slow fade, is one not to be quickly shelved. - The Blue Indian
All Dies Down is the debut full length release from Alabama folk-rockers Fire Mountain and follows the bands EP, Of The Dust which we featured on Beat Surrender a couple of years ago, in the intervening period the band have spent their time writing songs for All Dies Down â a number of which have appeared in demo form on the bands Soundcloud page giving a glimpse of what to expect, the recordings were finalised during late 2013 at Ol Elegante studios in Birmingham, Alabama and the resulting album is a fine collection that flows effortlessly along on a sea of sweet melodies and killer hooks â exemplified by my favourite track of the album and one of my favourites of 2014 Doing Fine.
âWe tend to write a lot about life changes,â says Brown. âOur previous albums have been about changes and All Dies Down is no different. This album focuses mostly on the shift that occurs when you start to settle down in life and have to learn to get over yourself in order to live with another person.â - Beat Surrender
Not content to coast on accolades that included being named among the â12 Alabama Bands You Need to Know Nowâ by Paste Magazine in 2013, the Troy, Alabama quintet Fire Mountain look to justify that praise on their debut LP, All Dies Down.
Having released two EPs in 2011, Of the Dust and Liarsâ Cup, those stark, rustic songs only hinted at the bandâs potential. Recorded and produced by Les Nuby (Verbena, Vulture Whale), All Dies Down dramatically captures and expands the true essence of the bandâs sound. Still revolving around vocalist/guitarist Perry Brownâs passionate delivery on songs like the chugging âFortressâ and the solemn duet, âTraces,â lush instrumentation spreads the albumâs ten songs across a wider sonic canvas, from the jangly opener âBe Your Eyesâ to the raucous groove of âWired and Dying.â
Carolina hues and mountains
Oh, she took my breath away
Mostly from the height and not the sights
Such casual asides lessen the tautness of Brownâs lyrics. Noting All Dies Down âfocuses mostly on the shift that occurs when you start to settle down in life and have to learn to get over yourself in order to live with another person,â Brownâs vocal phrasing recalls that of fellow Alabaman, Jason Isbell, namely on the uptempo âFactory Lineâ where he sings, âWhen I kiss you / Just know Iâm spitting blood,â and the lonesome standout, âDoing Fine.â
The songs, playing and production on All Dies Down transform Fire Mountainâs signature mood pieces into joyous â and at times painful â paeans of change and maturity. In doing so, Fire Mountain demonstrates prior and future critical acknowledgement is truly warranted. - Bucket Full of Nails
When I first listened to All Dies Down I thought it was kind of a one note album. Over the next few weeks something kept tugging at me and trying to pull me back to listen it again. It turns out that I was wrong in my initial assessment and that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I like to live by the motto âIâll try anything two or three times, it may be an acquired taste!â The way its grown on me has been subtle but what hooked me and drew me back so that it could are the vocals. Of course that led to really paying attention to the lyrics which are, in the end, what sold me on this one.
Of course listening to this off and on over the last couple of weeks Iâve realized what didnât catch me as well and that provides an interesting dichotomy. Take the first track, âBe Your Eyesâ, with lyrics like:
Twistinâ on a line and hopinâ to unwind some pain
Letâs not keep the photographs of all the broken paths we take
Please donât let this pain be your eyesâŠ
which are utterly amazing. Then what, you might ask, didnât grab me the first time? Well itâs the music itself to be perfectly honest. Itâs got an âindieâ vibe to it that just didnât grab me. But then there are tracks like âFactory Lineâ which is perfect in its execution as far as I am concerned and I could listen to it just about any time. Of course that indie feel I mentioned is part of the heart of alt-country that Iâve never really understood. While standing on its own this album looks back at the heyday of Wilco and Whiskeytown and draws deeply from that well. While there are parts of that era that I really enjoy thereâs a definite dipping in to the indie well that I donât really feel. I know that actually admitting that makes me a Philistine but I really donât care that much. If youâre a fan of that era then this whole album will grab you from the get go. If youâre like me itâll take more than one listen but itâll grow on you as it did on me. This is most definitely an album that deserves being given a chance.
Overall the songwriting carries the day on this on All Dies Down and thatâs never a bad thing. Even on the tracks that harken to an era thatâs not my favorite they are more than enough to have kept me coming back. This is another strong release from our buddies at This Is American Music (you should check out their catalog if you havenât) and Fire Mountain should be damn proud of this record. - 9 Bullets
BlabberânâSmoke got all fired up over Fire Mountainâs EP, Of The Dust, way back in 2011. Since then main man Perry brown has been posting demos via Facebook before launching a Kickstarter campaign for this album. Sadly there was a shortfall and for a while it looked as if the demos would have to suffice for the time being. A pleasant surprise then to find out that theyâre the latest addition to This Is American Musicâs roster with their debut album All Dies Down. On the EP we compared them to Fleet Foxes but here theyâve taken some giant strides while expanding their scope with a chunkier, beefed up sound, the result being a fine collection of strained ballads and sparkling countrified jaunts. Singer and songwriter Perry Brown remains a fine singer with his voice a well stained husky instrument in itself while the band (Ryan Richburg, electric guitar, Walter Black, bass, Bryan Segraves, keyboards and Adam Vinson on percussion) whip up a fine storm on occasion. Thereâs a Springsteen like muscularity to some of the tunes with much of this down to the keyboards while the guitars alternately ripple or spark with some feedback fury thrown in.
The album kicks off in fine fashion with Be Your Eyes, a fine mid tempo piece that recalls Whiskeytown, a perfect summer song with its rippling guitars and melodic joy. Anchor Iron weighs in with a whiff of Wilco circa Summerteeth and by now itâs apparent that as a band they have stepped up a pace with the arrangement here just short of wonderful. The rhythm section is taut while a tough guitar line chops across what appears to be a vibraphone as Brown sings with an almost hoarse weariness. The song bustles towards a busy middle eight before the choppy guitar and keyboards wind it down to the end, a great song and one that I reckon would please fans of Danny and The Champions Of The World. In fact there are times throughout the album when one can imagine Fire Mountain to be working at the same coal face as Danny and his Champs. Factory Line showcases the bandâs new muscle with a guitar riff descended from Secret Agent Man that mutates into a churning country rock stew with added organ swirling throughout. Brown is ferocious as he spits out the words as the band pummel on. While itâs difficult to make out what the song is about it conjures up a neon lit strip peopled with hookers and full of danger. In any case itâs grade A Americana noir.
Time for a breather with the gentle strum of At The Seams , a song that is gently energised by a softly propulsive bass and drums with rippling piano before it takes wings and flies. Doing Fine has a Stray Gators pulse beat with guitars shimmering in the background and an excellent piano solo as Brown paints a picture of ennui in a small town while Traces just about stumbles into view with a Stonesâlike woozy swagger, the beat just behind the guitars while Brown is joined on vocals by Janet Simpson-Templin. The outro here is majestic and does recall Jagger and Richardsâ finer forays into the country genre. They cap it all with the final song, Moving Target, opening with Brown crooning over first acoustic and then electric guitar filigrees before the full band pitch in leading to an organ and feedback drenched climax. Tremendous. - Blabber N' Smoke
I'm glad that Fire Mountain found a home for its latest record, All Dies Down. You may remember I tried to get you guys to throw some money at the band a few weeks back. I was unsuccessful and the campaign didn't reach its goal. Fortunately, This Is American Music has released the record and I simply can't think of a better pairing.
All Dies Down is everything I've come to expect from Fire Mountain. Passion, a good dose of mystery, and some moody Appalachian roots. However, the band stretches itself on songs like "Factory Line" and the angular "Fortress." Fire Mountain does a beautiful job of blending indie pop elements into its roots music. This isn't gimmicky at all -- it's just a band continuing to grow. I know I'll be humming "Fortress" for quite some time to come. - Adobe and Teardrops
At first listen All Dies Down by Fire Mountain is a haunting, melodic journey. A soundtrack to the human conditionâŠcomplex, flawed, true, faithful and expressive. Its songs meet each other, and say goodbye as well, each waiting to see what the next one has to offer.
While playing the record, I was admittedly doing other things. But I was drawn back to these songs over and over again, excited to hear something I may have missed. When listening to a record I ask myself two things â Do I want to listen again? And how does it make you feel? This record simply put, made me feel happy, sad, angry, all of it, and that is rare. The melodies are complex yet catchy, the lyrics heartfelt and sharp. I really enjoyed the opening song, âBe Your Eyesâ, asking âLets not keep all the photographs of the broken paths we take, Please donât let this pain be your eyesâ. âDoing Fineâ is a steady, melodic tune about helping someone cope, âfeel like the devil, in the midst of angelsâŠbaby no oneâs doing fineâ. My favorite however, is âFortressâ. A song that compares relationships and the personal demons they awaken to battle is a song I can identify with. âI canât surrender now darling, thereâll be no armistice. Only a fool fights with a kissâ.
It is a great, great song on an album full of great songs. âAll Lies Downâ will make you think, and feel, and will keep drawing you back to it long after you thought you forgot about it. It is that good. - Empty Bottles and Broken Souls
Fire Mountainâs debut full-length All Dies Down came out on TIAM on 20th of May and it has been on my playlist ever since. All Dies Down is a damn fine americana release. The title might seem a little hopeless, but this is not just doom and gloom. This thing actually holds a lot of beauty inside. These southern folk rockers certainly have a certain pop sensibility as well. This is Doing Fine from Fire Mountainâs new album. - One Chord to Another
This Alabama-based five-piece released a six-track EP (Of The Dust) back in 2011/12 that impressed many of the critics but didn't quite get to me in the same way, sounding a little under-nourished I guess. Perhaps it's the fact that they get the chance to stretch out a bit more on this full-length collection, or it might be that the intervening couple of years have seen a shift in my own musical sensibilities, but I find this set pretty convincing, altogether more so in general, although on first play it seems to sprawl rather than cohere, at least in terms of sharpening the band's influences into a more consistent vision.
A few plays later however, and it all begins to gel quite nicely, with the band's lead songwriter and guitarist Perry Brown's increased confidence and maturity showing through in his lyrics - heartfelt portraits of the eternal human journey of life, love and faith that focus on the process of settling down. These are ably complemented by the band's taut and well-considered musical settings, which stride purposefully across the plains of Americana taking in driving southern rock (Wired And Dying) through to the decidedly Springsteen-esque Factory Line via slow-burning country (At The Seams) and a rolling acoustic finale that builds anthemically (Moving Target).
The band sound is muscular, full and satisfying, with prominent electric guitar lines and busy yet tightly coordinated keyboard fills and a convincing corporate identity. Although there's not much (if anything really) to criticise, however, some Americana lovers may find the overall feel of Fire Mountain just a touch derivative until, a few plays in and with careful aural scrutiny of the lyrics, the band's music starts to fall into a natural place within your consciousness. - Fatea Magazine
Discography
ALBUMS:
Of the Dust ( © 2011, Independent Release)
Liars' Cup EP ( © 2011, Independent Release)
Photos
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Bio
Effortlessly alternating between Southern slow-burners and folk-rock jams, Fire Mountainâs first full-length album, All Dies Down (This is American Music), propels the band into the forefront of Southern indie rock and roll music. Taking a massive step forward from the bandâs 2011 EP, Of The Dust. Lead singer/songwriter Perry Brownâs complex, heartfelt songs have led to this proud Troy, Alabama band making quite a name for themselves. Since their formation in 2009, Fire Mountain has recorded a Daytrotter session, was named by Paste Magazine as one of the â12 Alabama Bands You Need To Know Now [in 2013]â, and has relentlessly toured throughout the Southeast.
Recorded and produced at the expert hands of Les Nuby (Verbena, Vulture Whale) at Birminghamâs Ol Elegante studios, these are songs that take a page out of a chapter in anyoneâs life. Time and again, Brown is able to express the human journey of love, life, and faith through his poignant, scalpel-like lyrics. Those words are buoyed up by the bands sonic sculptorsâAdam Vinson on percussion, Walter Black on bass guitar, Ryan Richburg on electric guitar, and Bryan Segraves on the keys.
âWe tend to write a lot about life changes,â says Brown. âOur previous albums have been about changes and All Dies Down is no different. This album focuses mostly on the shift that occurs when you start to settle down in life and have to learn to get over yourself in order to live with another person.â
Fire Mountain continues to improve on an already outstanding sound with All Dies Down. With growing acclaim and an aggressive ambition, the band is poised to be the next standout in the ever-fertile musical soil of Alabama.
Band Members
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