Greek Fire Return With A Vengeance To A Packed Delmar Hall Wednesday

–by Sean Derrick
I have to be honest, when 105.7 The Point’s HoHo Shows were announced the one show that stood out above the rest was the Greek Fire show at Delmar Hall on December 18. Yes, there were some great artists in the other ten shows that were announced, but it had been four years since Greek Fire headlined a show like this in their hometown. That alone warranted my attention, not to mention the other things that had gone on since I last saw them for a HoHo Show at The Pageant in 2015.
Most fans of Greek Fire know the ups and downs the band has had since that last show. From highs of two new records (2018’s surprise drop of their EP Orientation, and this summer’s release of the album Broken ) to the lows (founding guitarist Ryan Phillips’ departure, the passing of their longtime friend and producer, and some personal non-band related issues) Greek Fire has had a tumultuous few years. But, thankfully for the fans, the band’s drive is filled with tenacity.

Lead vocalist/guitarist Moon (Philip Sneed), wondered how the band would be received having been gone from the scene for so long (save a few short sets that included Pointfest and at Pop’s for The Point’s morning show, The Rizzuto Show, that Moon is an on-air personality for). Would they (the fans) be receptive? Would they turn out?
The answer to both was a resounding yes. Delmar Hall sold out fairly easily, and the crowd was pumped to see their favorite band.

Let’s face it, with catchy tunes laden with excellent powerful and easily memorable lyrics coupled in a high energy live show it is hard to just brush away this band.
Right from the start Greek Fire kicked off the show with the opening track to Broken with “What’s Left” and the crowd was singing along from the opening lyrics. Nearly every song after that the crowd sang almost every word, even picking up Moon when he forgot the lyrics to “A Real Life”.

Over the course of the nearly two-hour set Moon (along with bassist Mark Joseph Roth, drummer Johnny Venus, and guitarist Chris Hobbs) tore through song after song. From old favorites like “Dreaming in Déjà vu” (one of Moon’s two favorite songs that he has written) and “Doesn’t Matter Anyway” to new songs from Broken like “Coming Out of the Rain” and a hauntingly beautiful cover of Cyndi Lauper’s classic “True Colors” (seriously, if you haven’t heard this you need to check it out here), they tore the roof off with the vibrant electricity they generated on stage.
Even on slower songs, like the aforementioned “True Colors” to an amazing cover of Linkin Park’s “Crawling” kept the crowd’s attention glued to the stage as Moon performed each song acoustic with violinist Abigail Stahlschmidt (from the Vivaldi Metal Project). Stahlschmidt’s spectacular performance provided a somber, yet at times Celtic feel with a transcending touch to transcending songs. She performed with the band for several numbers throughout the 2nd half of the show.

For not having played much in the past four years the band members played a very tight set, filled with excitement and topped with style points. Moon, as usual, excelled as a frontman and was at ease with the crowd, knowing when to joke and what to do to give that unforgettable performance a crowd desires. His vocals were sharp as was his wit. (drawing everyone’s attention to him just to get a drink of water, then joking about professional timing was hilarious)

One of the most moving moments of the evening came in the encore. Normally, the band would end with “Dreaming in Déjà vu”, but with the death of their longtime friend and producer Matthew Amelung this year to cancer they found it fitting to pay tribute to him with an acoustic version of “If This is the End (The Sound of Belief)”. I saw many teary eyes from my position in the crowd from fans who either knew Matthew or their own experiences with cancer which they used the song to help cope.

It was an emotional and fitting ending to an emotional and uplifting evening for a band that strives to show love to their hometown fans, and a strong following that reciprocate just the same.
Moon assured and promised that Greek Fire would be releasing their long awaited next album Found (the third in a trilogy, of sorts, that started with the EP Lost and continued with Broken ) but didn’t say when or what songs would be on it. Given the track record of this band it most assuredly will be just as dynamic, thought provoking, and entertaining as their other releases.
Hounds opened with a nice set.
Check out the gallery of the show after the setlist.
Greek Fire Setlist:
What’s Left
Break Me Down
A Real Life
I’m Afraid of Americans (David Bowie cover)
Put Your Hands on Me
Wisdom justice and Love (Linkin Park cover)
Crawling (Linkin Park cover with Abigail Stahlschmidt)
Under the Stars (with Abigail Stahlschmidt)
Wait It Out
Doesn’t Matter Anyway
Make Me Believe
Coming Out of the Rain
Running Away (with Abigail Stahlschmidt)
True Colors (Cyndi Lauper cover, with Abigail Stahlschmidt)
Coming Alive
The Ride
Top of the World (with Abigail Stahlschmidt)
Dreaming in Déjà vu (with Abigail Stahlschmidt)
Encore:
If This is the End (The Sound of Belief) (with Abigail Stahlschmidt)