- Love
- Run
- Hole in My Hand
- Cut & Move
- Regret
- Far & Gone
- Wake Me
- When the Light
- Frustrating
- Reborn
Day of Fire debuted strongly in 2004, fueled by the remarkable testimony of front man Josh Brown and his battle with addictions in the secular band Full Devil Jacket. His shift from darkness to light—musically and spiritually—connected with audiences, earning the self-titled debut a Grammy nomination and a Dove award for 2005's Rock Album of the Year. But the band at that time was little more than a duo (Brown with guitarist pal Gregg Hionis), backed by studio musicians with an over-produced, formulaic neo-grunge sound. On
Helped by producer Pete Thornton (Limp Bizkit, Shinedown), this very short 32-minute effort is generally a step in the right direction, demonstrating the difference between true '90s grunge and today's tamer neo-grunge within the same album. "Hole in My Hand" is a big melodic ballad a la Creed, and "When the Light" ends up reminiscent of Lifehouse's modern AC rock flavor despite small efforts to emulate Soundgarden's heavier and artful bombast. Contrast those with the dissonant guitar hook and scream-along chorus of "Love," a piercing teen depression testimony clearly influenced by Nirvana's
Now if only Day of Fire wrote better songs to match. The aforementioned rockers and ballads work well enough, but "Regret" and "Wake Me" are more middling and bland. With recurring themes about forgetting sinful pasts and pressing onward, the saccharine love song "Far & Gone" seems out of place, and "Frustrating" lives up to its title with a lame declaration of faith ("When it gets so frustrating, I just sing your song inside my head"). The sound is often spot-on, but shallow lyrics still hinder this Fire's growth.