Dance, You’re on Fire: The next big thing

By Andrea Vermaak

I’ve seldom been wrong at predicting a great future for certain bands. Now I am telling you that the next big thing to watch out for is Dance, You’re on Fire. Currently on tour, promoting their debut album Secret Chiefs, the Joburg-based boys do not only have an album of top notch production quality, but they bring much needed, fresh energy and enthusiasm to the South African stage with their rock ‘n roll meets indie vibe.

Dance, You're on Fire being awfully sombre

Their relaxed, happy-go-lucky attitude, charm and sense of humour is present both on and off stage. They have a no pretense, no nonsense attitude. There is still a sense of humility and gratefulness that so many bands push aside and forget about too soon. It’s almost as if they don’t know how great they are and can be. My only hope is that they keep this attitude because then they will go even further than even I can predict.

Super enthused lead singer and guitarist, Tom Manners, has been likened to the voices of Panic! At The Disco and Fall Out Boy. And rightly so. But the boys describe their music as far more creative, yet still accessible. Their rocking second single, Boxes of Tigers is currently number five on the Tuks FM Top 30 and number two on The Sondag Tuks FM Most Wanted Listener Top 20.

Dance, You’re on Fire opened for aKING at Tings 'n Times in Pretoria on Friday, 1 April 2011. They had an excitable crowd dancing and singing along to not only Boxes of Tigers, but to their first single Blockade and title song Secret Chiefs. Their debut performance of Michelle added something sweet to sway to in their set of power guitar songs. Speaking of which, guitarist Adrian Erasmus is a seriously great guitarist of whom any other SA band should be jealous!

Secret Chiefs is currently available online at www.danceyoureonfire.co.za and at their gigs, as well as at certain music outlets in Gauteng. Secret Chiefs is going to be launched in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in early June this year. Next stop, the world! 

Tour dates are also available online. If Dance, You’re on Fire is performing in your area, you simply have to check them out! When they go big, as I predict, you can say that I told you so!