Trial By Fire
Trial by Fire was a Chicago punk band that performed from Autumn 1981 to Autumn 1982, after the demise of Strike Under. All of the members - Pierre Kezdy, Chris Bjorklund and Bob Furem - had been in Strike Under. Trial By Fire did not officially release any records duiring their lifetime though they recorded a 9 song demo in December 1981 and a full record in April 1982. In 2017 their record from the 1982 recordings was finally given a proper release by Alona's Dream Records
Just about anyone who saw Trial By Fire live or heard their (at the time ultra rare) recordings back then said that they were a special band. Many call them the first true hardcore band from Chicago. Even today people who were part of the scene in 1981/1982 say that Trial By Fire was one of the best bands of the Chicago Punk era.
Members
- Chris Bjorklund - Guitar
- Pierre Kezdy - Bass
- Bob Furem - Drums
Available Recordings
- A inquiry on the TCP Punk messageboard reveals that there is a three song demo and some live casettes, but they are not readily available.
- It is rumored (old message board post) that they recorded an album but it was never released. Not sure if that is different then the demo cassette, but I assume so. This was confirmed in issue #1 of Last Rites
- In Naked Raygun's Quartersick CD re-release of All Rise, they include a cover of Trial By Fire's Rocks of Sweden.
- Naked Raygun's Last of the Demohicans includes a cover of TBF's Giveaway, written by Pierre Kezdy. The cover was recorded during the Jettison sessions on April 21, 1987
- Arsenal, a later band with Pierre Kezdy and Santiago Durango does a cover of Trial By Fire song(s) on their Factory Smog Is A Sign of Progress EP.
Releases
- Demo Tape (1981)
- "Rocks of Sweden" on the You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1979-1984 soundtrack LP (Factory 25, 2008)
- 1982 CD/LP/Digital (Alona's Dream Records, 2017)
- Includes the band's unreleased LP and 8 demo tracks (demo tracks are included on the CD and available as an additional download with the LP)
Shows Played
- December 31, 1981 - at O'Banion's with Naked Raygun. Perhaps their first show.
- February 26, 1982 - at C.O.D. with The Effigies
- March 25, 1982 - at 950 Lucky Number
- April 23, 1982 - at the Cubby Bear, opening for Naked Raygun
- August 26, 1982 - at C.O.D. with Rights of the Accused
- September 11, 1982 - Lincoln Arcade, Milwaukee