Kentucky Shroud, 2008
~buy it~
"Flaming Fire Spawn Nightmares: This is what could have been for the Manson 'Family' in Brooklyn. This Brooklyn-based collective think Animal, not New Pornographer revels in somnolent call-and-response chants, the musical equivalent of Spiritualist automatic writing techniques. Discord reigns on Flaming Fire's "Kentucky Shroud," a jarring cacophony of sounds manufactured by leader Patrick Hambrecht and his apostles (among them, his wife, Kate). Their tracks are firmly rooted in place Williamsburg, natch but time is of the essence when drugs abound. In "Natural Light Catastrophe," the clan bemoan their hipster, drug-induced poverty with lyrics like, "But in Williamsburg they're doing cocaine, money up the nose, money down the drain." There's a lot of growling and groaning and angry spitting throughout the album, but somehow the Manson family-manque manage to charm through their admittedly frightening veneer. ”
-Nick Haramis, Black Book

 

When the High Bell Rings, 2007
~buy it~
"Flaming Fire succeeds because there's nothing forced about Mr. Hambrecht's religious fervor; you really get the feeling this guy is on a mission from God. There’s no wink or smirk at the camera, just passion and drive (and maybe half a wink). But this freak show is something quite real, the same kind of stuff big tent revivals and mega churches are made of (except those people would probably see When the High Bell Rings as the devil's work); the odd elements comprise but some of the album's highlights. Flaming Fire's clusterfuck becomes a wonderful conglomeration of genres tied together by a loose theme, much like a church potluck. Flaming Fire stirs bland flavors together and mashes them into divine comfort food.”
-Mark Karges, Delusions of Adequacy

 

Songs From the Shining Temple
~buy it~
“It's like experiencing your purest visions of heaven and hell while attending Sunday school wasted on glue...Like a lost synth-prog opera, a forgotten cosmology laced in rock and roll, this extremely theatrical second album from Brooklyn's Flaming Fire very nearly defies description, let alone those facile 'sounds like X crossed with Y' comparisons. 'Songs from the Shining Temple' is like watching Billy Graham with the sound off, Black Sabbath blasting in the background.”
-Jennifer Kelly, Splendid

Get Old and Die With Flaming Fire
~buy it~
“Flaming Fire bills itself as an Expressionist, Greco-Roman, Fellini-esque performance outfit, but all those adjectives are vain attempts to categorize the uncategorizable. The songs on the group’s ‘Get Old and Die’ randomly mix pop camp, goth over-earnestness, folk tunefulness, electro noise, choral chanting, and some old-fashioned hollering into a chaotic stew. Singer Lauren Weinstein is also a comic artist—check out her work in the book ‘Inside Vineyland’—so don’t be surprised if the theatrical live show comes with some visuals, too.”
-The Onion
all material © 2009 Flaming Fire/ Cuniglius Records