Smoke or Fire

The band originally formed in Boston in 1998,{{Cite web |date=20 November 2004 |title=Band {{!}} Jericho |url=http://www.jerichomusic.com/band.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050901101035/http://www.jerichomusic.com/band.html |archive-date=1 September 2005 |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=Jericho}}{{Cite web |title=Smoke or Fire Biography, Songs & Albums |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/smoke-or-fire-mn0000514172/biography |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161028023350/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/smoke-or-fire-mn0000514172/biography |archive-date=28 October 2016 |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=Allmusic}} when western Massachusetts native Joe McMahon got together with Chris Brand, Bill Ironfield, and Nick Maggiore, who hailed from New Hampshire. The four met while attending Boston University. Originally calling themselves Jericho,{{Cite web |date=19 January 2005 |title=Jericho // Now on Fat Wreck Chords |url=http://www.jerichomusic.com/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051206010455/http://www.jerichomusic.com/ |archive-date=6 December 2005 |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=Jericho}} the band released their debut album, When the Battery Dies, in 2000. After the release of this record, Chris Brand left the band, and a new guitarist, Jeremy Cochran, replaced him. Their fan base grew as they played DIY basement shows and small clubs throughout the Northeast.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024|reason=}}

After the release of When the Battery Dies, the quartet moved to Richmond, Virginia, where they worked on their second album. This was when Bill Ironfield left the band, and Ken Gurley joined on bass, with Joe McMahon taking over guitar.

It was at about this time that the band was contacted by a 1970s-era Christian rock band from Houston, Texas, also called Jericho, to inform them that the name was already taken. To avoid confusion and legal action, the band amended their name to Jericho RVA. The initials were a nod to their new hometown of Richmond, Virginia.

Jericho RVA is the name that appears on their 2003 extended play Worker's Union. An older version, released under the band's original name Jericho, does not include the song "Oxygen" that is on the Jericho RVA release. The other six songs of the EP are the same on both records. Worker's Union caught the attention of reviewers, labels, and established bands interested in taking them out on tour, such as NOFX and Fat Wreck Chords.

Jericho RVA changed their name again to Smoke or Fire in 2004, citing continued protests from Christian groups who complained about the religious "blasphemy" of the band adopting a bible-derived name.

Due to the strength of the Worker's Union EP, Smoke or Fire were approached by the independent California punk rock label Fat Wreck Chords in late 2004. Their debut full-length album, Above the City, was co-produced by Fat Mike of NOFX and was released in March 2005. After a tour to support Above the City, the band's drummer, Nick Maggiore, departed the group.

Shortly before the band began recording their second full-length album This Sinking Ship, they hired a new drummer, David Atchison, from the neo-crust band From Ashes Rise. The band released their second album This Sinking Ship on February 20, 2007. Later in 2007, Ken Gurley departed the band.{{Cite web |date=9 October 2007 |title=Bassist Ken Gurley Leaves Smoke or Fire |url=https://www.punknews.org/article/25936/bassist-ken-gurley-leaves-smoke-or-fire |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220606000839/https://www.punknews.org/article/25936/bassist-ken-gurley-leaves-smoke-or-fire |archive-date=6 June 2022 |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=PunkNews}} The next year, Gwomper from Avail joined as the band's new bassist.{{Cite web |date=2 May 2008 |title=Gwomper (Avail) Joins Smoke or Fire Full-Time, Recording Soon |url=https://www.punknews.org/article/28737/gwomper-avail-joins-smoke-or-fire-full-time-recording-soon |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=PunkNews}}

Their third and, to date, latest album, The Speakeasy, was released November 9, 2010. Some of the tracks were released ahead of time as teasers, such as "Neon Lights" and the title track "The Speakeasy".{{Citation needed|date=July 2024|reason=Specifically for the part about "Neon Lights" and "The Speakeasy" being released as singles prior to the album's release.}}

Joe McMahon relocated to Münster, Germany, in 2013. While there, he recorded acoustic covers of several Smoke or Fire songs, including "Neon Lights."{{Cite web |date=2 September 2016 |title=Another Life (LP) |url=https://joemcmahonmusic.bandcamp.com/album/another-life-lp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210831011741/https://joemcmahonmusic.bandcamp.com/album/another-life-lp |archive-date=31 August 2021 |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=Bandcamp}} He released his debut solo album, Another Life, on September 2, 2016, under Smartpunk in the United States and Gunner Records in Europe.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024|reason=}}

In 2022, the Boston-based label Iodine Recordings announced their intentions to release Beauty Fades. The compilation features all the songs from the Worker's Union extended play, as well as other previously unreleased tracks and B-sides. Beauty Fades was released on May 27, 2022.{{Cite web |date=14 May 2022 |title=Beauty Fades {{!}} Smoke or Fire {{!}} Iodine Recordings |url=https://iodinerecordings.bandcamp.com/album/beauty-fades |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428065019/https://iodinerecordings.bandcamp.com/album/beauty-fades |archive-date=28 April 2022 |access-date=5 June 2022 |website=Bandcamp}}

• Joe McMahon – vocals, guitar
• James Muñoz – bass
• Jeremy Cochran – guitar
• Dave Atchison – drums

• Ken Gurley – bass
• Ryan Parrish – drums
• Nick Maggiore – drums
• Chris Brand – guitar
• Bill Ironfield – guitar

• When the Battery Dies (released as Jericho [RVA] in 2000; re-released as Smoke or Fire in 2015)
• Worker's Union EP (2003) (released as Jericho [RVA])
• Above the City (2005)
• This Sinking Ship (2007)
• Prehistoric Knife Fight 7" (2010)
• The Speakeasy (2010)
• Beauty Fades (2022)

• "California's Burning" (2005)
• "The Patty Hearst Syndrome" (2007)
• "It All Went Black" (2016)

• Billy Liar / Some Legacy (2019)

• [http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=5992171&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=cccccc&fullscreen=1 Full Live Set from The Fest 6]

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Category:Punk rock groups from Virginia

Category:Fat Wreck Chords artists

Category:Musical groups established in 1998

Category:American melodic hardcore musical groups

Category:Pop punk groups from Massachusetts