iSound

The Holy Fire began in early 2004 following a studio project that turned out better than planned (and also birthed the band’s self-titled EP, recorded in Toronto in late 2003). Singer/guitarist Sean Hoen had known drummer Nick Marko as a fellow Pixies and Hüsker Dü fan after years of late night conversations in Detroit dive bars. Bassist Nathan Miller, Hoen’s compatriot in the frighteningly fucked-up Thoughts of Ionesco soon got involved along with their friend, art enthusiast/guitarist Ryan Wilson. “That was when the band formed and we had some kind of desperate telepathy and approached songs the same way. Everyone also wanted to rock, which I had pretty much given up on,” says Hoen of the lineup’s formation. The Toronto recording sessions were released as a self-titled EP (2004) that included the plodding and punchy “Lift Off Message” and five other gritty blasts of Afghan Whigs-meets-the Replacements-meets-My Bloody Valentine-influenced noise. Punk Planet called the EP “th...