Care Bears on Fire Hit the Books as Hard as The Stage

To some, high school bands could be seen as a right of passage. However if you're a member of Care Bears on Fire, being in a band goes beyond your high school auditorium.

Guitarist and lead singer Sophie, drummer Izzy and bassist Jena aren't your average high school musicians. The girls, who range between 14 and 16 in age, have been featured in New York Magazine and Spin Magazine, played Jane's Addiction Perry Farrell's Lollapalooza and signed to S-Curve Records – home of power-pop super band Tinted Windows and legendary singer Tom Jones. Not bad for three Brooklyn teens that just want to get their music out there.

Before their gig at Maxwell's on June 13, Patch spoke to Care Bears on Fire to find out what it's like to be in an breakout punk band and still be able to get through their final exams.

Unlike other acts their age (especially those of the Disney variety), these girls are deeply rooted in the older rock and punk music scenes. "We feel really inspired by girl bands because they really opened the doors," 15-year-old Sophie said. "And we are now really able to follow in their footsteps."

Naming bands like Sleater-Kinney, the Donnas and the Joan Jett-fronted Runaways as some of their big influences, Izzy also pointed out that 70's rock artist Patti Smith as a huge inspiration and even revealed to recently reading her memoir "Just Kids."

"We're really inspired by Patti Smith," the 14-year-old drummer said. "Not only as a musician but also as a writer. We all read her book recently, and we really love her."

What's even more interesting is that opposed to choosing one of their songs as a favorite to play live, Sophie admits that she loves playing Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World."

"It's just really fun because we do it at hyper speed, or it must be at triple speed because it's a really slow song," Sophie said. "I was actually listening to it the other day, and I was like, 'Wow, it's so slow.' But it's really fun because we do it so up-tempo and crazy and bouncy and fun, and everybody just starts getting up."

With a collection of seasoned artists influencing Care Bears on Fire, it's no wonder that even the 21-plus crowd has been able to get into their sound. "I think we feel very lucky to have different kinds of people coming to our shows and supporting us," Jena said.   

But before you think these girls are intimidated by audiences who are five or even 10 years their senior, think again. They admit that impressing people their age with the music is more nerve racking. "I feel we get more nervous playing for people our age because they know us, and they're judgmental," Izzy said.

And if you're thinking that Sophie, Jena and Izzy are all about the music and have forgotten about hitting the books, the opposite is true. While they have to work a little bit harder to balance rocking out on stage and getting an education, the band is too busy enjoying the ride right now (school included) that they don't mind going the extra mile to get it all done.

"It can be hard to balance what we do, but it's all stuff we're really, really passionate about," Izzy said. "It's all things we really love. We love school, we love hanging out with our friends, and we love playing music and being together. So we really work incredibly hard to make it all work and try to do as much as possible."

Having a viable music career in high school can be a way to get out of going to college. However everyone in the band all plan to go to college at some point. "We don't each just do music," Sophie said. "We all have other things that we really enjoy doing, and I definitely see some sort of college education down the path."

"We all think that school's obviously very important," Jena added. "And we're not doing this so we can get out of school earlier, and we do plan on going to college or going even further than college. Music obviously is extremely important to us."

Care Bears on Fire's first gig was at a pizza place that hardly anyone attended, but the band saw that as a learning experience and feel that anyone who wants to start a band should take every opportunity that falls into their laps.

"I think another good piece of advice is to not give up," Izzy said. "Obviously we've been in touch with people who were like, 'Oh girls don't play drums' or 'you guys are too young' and stuff like that. And it's always going to be like that with the haters, but just ignore them. If you're passionate about it then really just go for it."

Care Bears on Fire will be at Maxwell's Sunday, June 13 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $5. For more information call (201) 653-1703.