FIRE IN THE RADIO - "Red Static Action"

Release Date: December 21, 2025 Label: Wednesday Records

OVERVIEW:

The seeds for Fire in the Radio were planted long before their 2020 acclaimed record Monuments, or their prior efforts on New Air (2017) or Telemetry (2015). Rather, before reforming in 2013, the band got its start late one summer evening in the early aughts on the front porch of 428 W. Nittany in State College, Pennsylvania. That evening, Rich Carbone (singer/guitarist) was hosting a low key gathering of college students and was introduced to Jonathan Miller (singer/guitarist). Recognizing their shared interest in 90’s indie rock, the two located some guitars and held up for the remainder of the evening trading song ideas.

Miller, who had separately been playing with Edward Olsen (bass), suggested the three of the them connect and Fire in the Radio was born. Taking their name from a line in the Charles Burkowski poem, Regard Me, the members set about finding a drummer.

Responding to a flyer at the local record store, Adam Caldwell (drums), knocked on the W. Nittany door while out for a run. Though the band was initially skeptical given his track attire, it was soon revealed that Caldwell’s love of running was merely a foil to counterbalance his exhaustive smoking habit. And, as it turned out, Caldwell, who hailed from the Richmond punk scene, was also an excellent drummer.

At the time of Caldwell’s joining, the band had already agreed to serve as a recording project for fellow music engineering student, Mat Edgecomb. Caldwell quickly learned the songs and three weeks later the band assembled at Lebanon Valley College to record them.

Recorded live to tape with minimal overdubs, the ten (10) songs, played with youthful exuberance and off-kiltered vocals, captured the energy of the new band and the burgeoning emo scene. While the songs were initially only intended as a demo, their friend, Reed Smith, offered to release it and it became the band’s first album, titled “Red Static Action.”

Touring followed for the better part of a year until the band went on hiatus when members moved to various areas of the Country.

While only limited copies were pressed, they nevertheless found their way to college radio and various press outlets and even ended up on Abercrombie & Fitch website on their Top 10 playlist (for the track answering machine).

Years later, the blog Willfully Obscure aptly summed up the band’s freshman effort:

“Fire in the Radio were a little known turn-of-the-millennium outfit from State College, PA (a town who's moniker is as curious as 'King of Prussia,' but I digress). This ever so slightly wet-behind-the-ears quartet bridged the gap between indie-rock and emo, putting them in league with contemporaries The Get Up Kids, Juliana Theory, and to a more negligible extent, Superchunk. Red Static Action may not have been particularly seismic, but it wielded the potential for a much more incendiary follow-up album - one that sadly never came to pass, for reasons unknown to myself. This fleeting ten-song disk appears to be the first and final word on Fire in the Radio.”

Upon seeing the review, the band questioned whether Red Static Action should indeed be the final word and agreed to meet up for a weekend in Washington, D.C. to play again. While searching for a rehearsal space, the band contacted the famed Inner Ear studios to see if they could recommend a place. Don Zientara (Fugazi) called them back and said “hey, the studio’s free if you want to rehearse here” and so they did.

While knocking the rust off and rehearsing at Inner Ear, the band found some new songs. Zientara popped his head in and said “hey, those sounds pretty cool, do you want me to record them?” They proceeded to do so, just as they had before, live to tape with minimal overdubs. The tracks, titled “Hide the Knives” and “Prairie,” were previously unreleased and serve as the start of a new chapter and bonus tracks to this re-release. Red Static Action along with the bonus tracks have been remastered (and the bonus tracks remixed) by Jesse Gander (Japandroids, White Lung, Dave Hause).

Line-up: Richard Carbone (vocals, guitar), Jonathan Miller (vocals, guitar), Adam Caldwell (drums), and Ed Olsen (bass).

HISTORIC PRESS ON THE RECORD:

"Solid Indie-rock on par with bands like Superchunk and Guided by Voices. Creeping guitar lines bursting into an uplifting chorus and bridge. "Answering Machine" is an answer to a rock and roll need." -Abercrombie & Fitch

"More indie-rock for your sweet tooth. This is melodic up beat indie rock with super distorted thick guitars. Simple softer vocals that works really nicely. Catchy sing along type music that people will be really into. It's a cross between Weston in the early days and mid-western style indie-rock like Braid. The kids love this kind of stuff... "-Slide the Needle fanzine

"cool vocals on post-R.E.M. tunes that evoke your typical longing or slacker ennui; with arrangements that go beyond the simple three-chord quality of grunge. Indie rock by four guys from State College, Penn., in blue jeans and T-shirts with no pretension and the occasional guitar solo. College rock a la Knapsack, Sugar or Vitreous Humor, or going back even further, Dinosaur Jr. (without Mascis' creepy moaning vocals). Living to a back beat and a chiming guitar. And that's all right with me.

-Lazy I fanzine

Emotastic. Very mellow, but rockin' indie punk rock music. Not too soft, not too hard, just right. Ten tracks of emo pleasure. It reminds me of Penflod, Sense Field, or a harder version of Jimmy Eat World, one song reminds me of the Get Up Kids. Tons of talent here. If you like emo music, GET THIS! It has everything you need in an emo CD. Great sound quality and production.

-PA Punk Page