I received an email from Hector F Haze early in December to check out his band FireHaze. It took me until now to get to them, and I have to say these guys were worth the wait! Wow! The musicianship in this band is second to none and the vocals were so Max Cavalera-esque that it reminded me of a young Sepultura. FireHaze are thrash at its finest! Their song “Enemy,” which they have a video for, just absolutely blew me away, but so did the bass work for “In God’s Hands” and the arrangement of “Misanthropy.” This music is as filthy as it comes and if you love thrash, you’ll love FireHaze.

FireHaze actually has quite an interesting story that evolved around three young Cubans who migrated to West New York from their island of Cuba. I mean, you can’t get any closer to Union City, or Little Cuba, than West New York. According to their bio, the three young lads all shared a common dream and that was to become members of a metal band. Their story began in 2007 when singer and bassist, Yunior, arrived in the U.S. from Havana. Upon arriving, he immediately began his search for musicians who shared the same vision as he did. He met a very talented guitarist in Carlos Gonzalez, who was also from Cuba, but he’d already been in the States for years when they met. Yunior would convince Carlos to start a band with him and by 2008, the duo adopted a name for their project that would later become the title of their first CD, Illuminated By The Fire. By 2009, their search for a drummer ended when Yunior and Carlos met Hector F Haze, another young Cuban, and the chemistry within the trio was evident from their first jam session. Thus, FireHaze was born!

FireHaze released Illuminated By The Fire in 2011, and are currently preparing a new demo and filming a follow-up video to “Enemy.” Their ultimate goal is to record a full-length disc for a major label and be able to showcase the full potential of the band. In the meantime, they’re aware that they have to do frequent gigs all over the Tri-State Area to get their name out there. With the way they sound now, it shouldn’t take too long! If you love thrash the way I love thrash, then you need to check FireHaze out now at firehazeband.com.

 

 

NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:

Out this week is the new full-length CD from Kearny’s Secret Country! The album, From The Barroom To The Bedroom, is the band’s long-awaited follow-up to their 2009 full-length, Women, Whiskey And Nightlife. From The Barroom To The Bedroom features 10 scorching new tracks of delectable harmonies and searing riffage. If you want a taste of Secret Country’s latest, download their lead single, “Night Of Whiskey,” for free at secretcountryband.com, where you can also purchase the disc.

Kraig Marshall of Bastard Brigade recently emailed me a link to some live footage of the band’s performance at The Blue Room in Secaucus from last month. Sounds like the band can really bring it live and is full of energy. Check the footage out for yourself on YouTube or to find out more about Bastard Brigade, log onto facebook.com/bastardbrigadeband.

And finally, it sounds like NJ music scene legends PUSH will be reuniting for one night to help with the Sandy relief efforts. They’ll be performing with fellow legends American Angel at Roxy & Dukes Roadhouse in Dunellen on Feb. 2. Also performing will be The Atomic Bitchwax, featuring Monster Magnet’s Bob Pantella on drums, Jester and Spice Hound Music Co. This sounds like it’s going to be an amazing night for those of you who remember the days when PUSH and American Angel were top dogs on the music scene! Don’t worry, you won’t be showing your age if you remember these bands! You can’t be any older than me! For more info on this show, log onto roxyanddukes.com.

That’s all for now! If your band is from North Jersey, and you want some exposure, send your press kits to Arts Weekly, c/o Tim Louie P.O. Box 1140, Little Falls, NJ 07424, or you can email me at tim@theaquarian.com, where you can also let me know where you’re performing next!

 

Just remember….We’re all in the same boat, so every little bit of exposure counts!

Tim Louie is the Author of S**t Happens.

NJN Concert Calendar:

1/17—Aurin/Sylex/Pool Of Thorns—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

1/17—Black Summer—Mulcahy’s Pub, Wantagh, NY

1/18—Lords Of Mercy—The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ

1/18—Borgo Pass/.49 Grain—Revolution Bar and Music Hall, Amityville, NY

1/18—Dead Fish Handshake/ Ed Kowalczyk—Bergen PAC, Englewood, NJ

1/18—PT Grimm/Reese Van Riper/The Racer—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

1/19—Audio Machine—Brighton Bar, Long Branch, NJ

1/19—Attacker/Arctic Flame/Present Darkness/Operatika—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

1/19—Of Earth—Spike Hill, Brooklyn, NY

1/24—BlackOcean/Panzie*–The Rebel Rock Bar, Philadelphia, PA

1/25—Robot Slaves/Spiritual Sickness/Spiral Out—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

1/26—Knucklebone/Our Black Friday—The Stanhope House, Stanhope, NJ
1/26—VOD/Carbomb/Slam One Down/Suffer Your Fate (formerly Spoonfed)/Givethemrope —Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

1/26—Atom Strange—Rock ‘N’ Ink Tattoo Festival, Stroudsburg, PA

1/30—Dead Fish Handshake/Eye Empire/3 Years Hollow/One Hundred Thousand—Architekt Music, Butler, NJ

2/1—In Spite Of—The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ

2/1—A Clever Con—The Legendary Dobbs, Philadelphia, PA

2/1—Give Them Rope—The Note, West Chester, PA

2/2—PUSH/American Angel/The Atomic Bitchwax/Jester/Spice Hound Music Company—Roxy and Dukes, Dunellen, NJ

2/9—BlackOcean/Lower The Veil/Audio Machine/Sekond Skyn—The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ

2/9—Secret Country—Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ