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Fire Is Motion - "Still, I Try" | Album Review

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by Jorge Ivan Velez (@funnylinkedin)

In light of the beautiful harmonies and triumphant arrangements giving off the aura of victory and resolution, there is a lingering turmoil in songwriter Adrian Amador’s head. It’s underlying; in creating pensive yet accessible indie rock, the New Jersey native hopes the peace found in these songs offer some sort of resolve. Under the moniker Fire Is Motion, Amador leads a collective of musicians who help him sort through a ruin of miscommunications on their EP Still, I Try, out now on Stack Your Roster.

Opener “Yesterday’s Coffee” ventures through the several states of Amador’s mind, running from debilitating anxiety to burgeoning excitement. In thumping kick drum, bright guitars and delicate vocal harmonies they sonically venture through all the imagined possibilities of a struggled connection. In their resounding group chants, they transform incredibly intimate moments into communally lived experiences. “Who Knows” is a sad slow dance of never knowing what the other is thinking until apathy’s hold grows too strong. This is best showcased by Avery Salermo’s thoughtful, and aptly defeated, delivery of, “It’s just like every time you tell yourself, ‘It’s gonna be fine.’”. While Fire Is Motion have no problem stampeding through a loud big band arrangement, they are at their best when displaying vulnerability; stripping down their message to only one vocal line, or a single acoustic guitar in order to carry meaningful weight.

Highly praised single, “Ringside,” offers all the most rewarding parts of the singer-songwriter genre. Initially a kick drum, a marauding complex riff on the acoustic guitar and Amador’s tense vocal all beg for the attention of an indifferent other party. But when this is not enough, Amador builds with the rest of his group through subtle driving distorted guitar harmonics and a large group vocal to announce, just, a meager question: “Do you mind that I still wait by the ringside?” In their beautiful delivery, Fire Is Motion convey an honest human experience in overextending oneself due to such deep care, something so earnest and real to relate to.

Although Amador’s resolve is not clear-cut, on record closer “How Long to Get Home?” he reveals the persistence driving him onward through the turmoil, singing, “Tomorrow is still a better day to die”. Entranced by the diligence of introspection, Fire Is Motion know there is no good reason to give up so easily. If this five-song release is any sign of what may come next, listeners should be excited as Amador and his collective of musicians continue to work through the minutia of daily living; offering love and community as a means of real human progress.