Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Delaware is a rather small state and has an even smaller music scene which becomes far more apparent when you experience cities not all that far away, e.g. Philly, DC, NYC, etc. I had been to very few shows with bands exclusively from Delaware; they were usually from PA or NJ. However, there was actually one band from Newark, DE that managed to get signed and go on to tour nationally. But wouldn’t you know it… just when I was inspired to write a post about the only band to get signed out of our home state, I find they’ve broken up and in a rather tragic way.

I actually had the pleasure of meeting most of these guys in person since we shared a few common friends (Delaware is a small state). I particularly remember an in depth music conversation with Josh at the Apple store. That was the first time I had met him and didn’t realize who he was until he gave me his email address which begged the notion that he was from Boy Sets Fire. I found Josh to be a down to earth guy and he was very pleasant to talk with. Sadly, he had a terrible accident falling three stories flat on his back sometime in late 2006/early 2007 from what I gather. Miraculously, he did survive and is not paralyzed, but he did fracture several vertebrae and break his neck and hips. I haven’t found any updated information about the accident on their site, but I hope that he is doing well.

To me, Boy Sets Fire is the first band I think of when I hear the genre post-hardcore. But in fairness, that’s because they were the first band I’d heard in this genre, so I might be a little partial. The biggest appeal to this band was their energy, not just in the rhythm and hard guitars, but also in the vocals and politically driven lyrics. This band had a lot more depth than the typical hardcore bands at the time. Aside from having a great mix of sounds, they also had multiple intricately laced guitar parts, driving bass lines, syncopated drums, and a great vocalist. Of course, they were from Delaware. So, it took a little too long for the rest of the world to catch on. I saw so many bands come through opening for Boy Sets Fire shows only to be headlining their own shows months later. For example, I remember them headlining a local show with Thursday opening. Mere months later, you could find Thursday on MTV. Luckily for Boy Sets Fire, they did eventually catch a break… it just wasn’t a long one.

Boy Sets Fire has four studio albums, and several other releases. My personal favorite is After the Eulogy (2000). In my opinion, this is the strongest album as a whole before they signed with Wind-up Records. I was rather upset when I heard they changed to Wind-up, but perhaps a bit over-critical of the subsequent release until I actually gave it a chance recently. It’s too easy to discard a band when given an unexpected change. Truthfully, Tomorrow Come Today (2003) wasn’t drastically different, just a much better recording and perhaps a little over-produced. This just came as a shock as they had been an indie band with against-the-grain political messages. Wind-up just wasn’t the best way to get their music out there. They were just a bad choice… and the band has publicly stated that. They did eventually get released from Wind-up and signed with Equal Vision. They had since toured through Europe, but have broken-up. It seems like a few of them have found new projects that will hopefully go on to do well.