NO FUEGO TO REALIZE DREAM ON HOUSE OF BLUES STAGE
By Kaiya Morrison
Taking things one day at a time to reach the nearest goal has been the long-standing plan for the Baton Rouge-based celtic punk rock band No Fuego. Since forming nearly four years ago, No Fuego has kept their dreams simple and in the moment.
“It’s come full circle,” Ty Moore, drummer for No Fuego, said. “When we first started this band, my first goal was to play a show. Then play another show. Then the goal was to play a show at the Spanish Moon with Guff. Then let’s do a real tour. Then let’s record a CD. Every time, for me personally, I’ve had to constantly up my goals for this band.”
The five members of No Fuego, which includes Moore, Shawn Lee (lead vocals, guitar), Remy Barthe (guitar), Greg Allen (bass), and Marshall Pounds (bagpipes), have accomplished every goal they’ve set out to complete, even though that isn’t always easy to do when you’re independently producing music - save for a distribution deal with Unable Records - that is far from the taste of mainstream audiences.
“We would be lying to ourselves if we played any other type of music,” Pounds said while silk screening No Fuego T-shirts at the band’s practice space off Old Hammond Highway.
However, before forming No Fuego, each of the members came from very different musical backgrounds.
“I came into this band with a piss-poor idea of what punk rock is,” Allen admitted. “I was a grunge rock dude, but now when I go back and listen to the old music I used to play, I get bored.”
“I think punk rock is the music of choice for any kid who is A.D.D.,” he added. “It changes rhythm constantly, and it’s quick. Three minutes is a really long for punk song.”
Although the love of the music was acquired rather than inherent, it’s now all the only style they want to play.
“It’s more fun to play than any other type of music,” Barthe said. “The live shows are, to me, more fun. It’s always high energy. That’s the best way to put it. There’s always something going on.”
Taking the good with the bad, No Fuego has performed to less than ideal crowds. Because they fall into a niche category of music, picking the right venue is key.
“We’ve played some really crappy shows,” Lee recalled with a laugh. “We got shut down one time about two years ago. We were at a biker bar, but it was like an old folks home. We got shut off after about two songs.”
Small clubs and house shows serve as the backbone for the No Fuego fan-base, so taking chances with venues is necessary. Each of the members, however, unanimously agree on one venue as being a major goal.
“From the day I picked up a guitar for the first time, I thought if I play the main stage at the House of Blues then I’ve done it,” Barthe explained. “Growing up in New Orleans, the House of Blues is the place to play.”
No Fuego will have their chance to fulfill a dream over a decade in the making on Thursday, November 13, when they will open for The Dropkick Murphys at the House of Blues in New Orleans.
“A couple of us went to the Flogging Molly show at the Varsity, and one of the guys who worked at the Varsity had our CD playing after all the bands finished,” Pounds recalled. “One of the guys from Flogging Molly, Dennis [Casey, guitar player], was out walking around after the show talking to people. I went up to him told him it was a great show, and he asked if I knew the band being played over the speaker. I told him that it was my band, and he asked when we were going to open for him.”
“Later he asked us to go to North Gate with him, so we hung out with him and he asked if we had a CD,” he continued to explain. “We didn’t have a CD on us, but one of our friends had one in his car. He went and grabbed it, and we didn’t even have a CD case for him, so we told him our name is No Fuego.”
During their time with Casey, they mentioned their desire to open for The Dropkick Murphys. Casey, who later contacted No Fuego to express his liking for their album, imparted a little inside knowledge.
“He said the best thing to do was to contact their manager, so Remy got right on it,” Pounds said.
“I e-mailed their manager and said, ‘Hey, we’re No Fuego from the New Orleans area and we think we would be a good fit for the show at the House of Blues,” Barthe said. “They hit us back and said we’re on the show if we want it. I thought it was going to be harder, but they actually made an extra space for us.”
For something that once seemed so out of reach, being in the right place at the right time afforded No Fuego the chance to perform in front of a crowd significantly larger than any they have before, and they will do so to the listening ears of a band they greatly admire.
Kaiya Morrison - Advocate