In a matter of months, this new-found style of songwriting and performance would find him in the final round of a local talent competition hosted at his college. Upon winning the contest, Melton was approached by a group of local Top 40 radio personalities and urged to form a band to pursue potential opportunities. Eagerly taking the advice, Melton quickly enlisted local musicians and the first of many successful projects was born under the name "Set Forth." The young and hungry group's first public appearance would occur less than two weeks later at the Budweiser Events Center along side local heroes, The Fray.
This initial public appearance would rapidly ignite the band's popularity both locally and regionally, yielding several key performance opportunities, including a sold-out crowd of nearly 7,000 at Colorado State University's Moby Arena supporting The Fray, a sold-out Thunder Mountain Amphitheater supporting Teddy Geiger and countless other dates with the likes of The Jonas Brothers, Gavin DeGraw, The Veronicas, Lifehouse, and more. The sudden, seemingly over-night, popularity garnered Top 40 radio attention, leading to a string of successful singles on 96.1 KISS FM, including, So It Goes and Never be the Same. With singles receiving wild popularity and unexpectedly competing with national artists, the band began to gain the attention of regional and nation record labels.
Now well-established and picking up even more speed, Set Forth began to expand out of their native Northern Colorado roots into Denver and other markets. Now under representation of powerhouse management and legal council, the band entered a series of significant motions, beginning with re-branding themselves as, The Northern Way. Under the new alias, and with a mostly new line up of musicians, The Northern Way entered The Blasting Room Studios to record The Northern Way EP under the guidance of producing mastermind, Christopher Jak. Recruiting an all-star production team including Grammy winner, Jeff Juliano and New York's Sterling Sound, the album was completed and released in the spring of 2008. Out of the gates the album received rave reviews and a barrage of media attention launching the band into an elite and coveted class of artist on the rise in the now booming Denver music scene.
Nearing the end of 2008, The Northern Way would enter into KTCL 93.3 FM's Hometown for the Holidays competition with their single, Crazy. Much to the chagrin of the band, the single would not make it past the top 10 of the contest. Redolent of Melton's premier performance in Northern Colorado, and despite the less-than-desired placement in the Hometown for the Holidays, the band was approached, again with great interest, by radio staff. This interest would quickly prove to be the key stepping stone in The Northern Way's already successful journey. The band's first national single, "Crazy," would go on to see thousands of spins in Top 40 radio and would unlock critical opportunities. Among the opportunities, their first showcasing experiences in New York City with a major recording label, lucrative licensing placement in commercials, retail and television.
A cycle of radio popularity, national attention and college tours would continue to fuel The Northern Way's success throughout 2009 and 2010, culminating with the band's second release, Starting Line EP. Playing to a sold-out crowd at Denver's Marquis Theater for its release, the record would go on to produce the band's second major single, Starting Line, which would, again, be met by radio popularity and would later be placed in the opening game of the 2014 NFL season. The band would also continue winning large-scale performance opportunities including Mile High Music Festival, SXSW, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, and a laundry list of other key appearances. They would also experience a slew of television performance for CBS, KWGN, WB and Dish Network.
Approaching 2011, The Northern Way would disband in a good-natured parting of ways. During this time, Melton began his involvement in several facets of the music business, including producing, hired-gun session performances and keyboards in various live and studio acts. It was also during this time that Melton reverted to his original roots of songwriting. Submersing himself in the music he'd grown up with and played along with to teach himself the piano, Melton revisited the musician that existed before his career had even begun. After nearly a year of intense songwriting and reinventing, Melton, once again, entered The Blasting Room Studios. Working with close friend, engineer and producer, Andrew Berlin, and supported by world-class recording artists, Dave Preston and Tohbias Juniel, the five-song extended play that came to life served as the artistic expression that reestablished Melton as an independent artist. Above all, the album reincarnated the hopeful songwriter playing along with classic rock records in his family's home; now in a much more mature iteration. Released in February of 2015, Stephen Melton spent its first two weeks as the #1 Pop/Rock album on Amazon's Best Seller List. Meeting and exceeding the long-awaited expectations of listeners, Melton continues garnering the adoration of the Pop music scene and once again, found a dead-locked and passionate niche in songwriting with seemingly no end in sight.
On Fire
Stephen Melton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I’ve got no shame because I never let you walk away.
And you got no time for games, but you let them happen anyway.
And it’s you that always seems to break and has to pay the price.
But that’s the thing about mistakes you never make the same one twice.
[ Pre-chorus ]
Don’t you want it?
You can have it, but so can I.
[ Chorus ]
I set it on fire just watch it burn down again.
And I build it back up just to let it come crashing in.
You been strung out like this before but you can’t keep coming back for more,
So I light it on fire just to let it cool down again.
[ Verse 2 ]
Maybe I got no restraints because I always know what to say.
And you got no complaints because you let it happen anyways.
Guilty pleasure’s poisonous, and takes away your innocence.
It’s got you feeling dangerous and it breaks your self defense.
[ Pre-chorus ]
But don’t you want it?
So do I.
And you could have it, all tonight.
[ Chorus ]
I set it on fire just watch it burn down again.
And I build it back up just to let it come crashing in.
You been strung out like this before but you can’t keep coming back for more,
So I light it on fire just to let it cool down again.
[ Bridge ]
You never knew it could feel this good but it never turns out the way you think it should.
And I’m never quite who you think I am but it’s you that puts the matches in my hands.
[ Chorus ]
I set it on fire just watch it burn down again.
And I build it back up just to let it come crashing in.
You been strung out like this before but you can’t keep coming back for more,
So I light it on fire just to let it cool down again.
The lyrics of Stephen Melton's "On Fire" tell a self-destructive love story about two people who keep giving in to their addiction to each other despite the harm it causes. The first verse establishes that the singer is unashamed because they have never let the other person walk away, while the other person has no time for games but keeps letting them happen anyway. The second verse suggests that the singer likes their power over the other person, knowing what to say to make things happen, while the other person enjoys the guilty pleasure of the addiction despite its poisonous effects. The pre-chorus asks if they both want it, while the chorus describes the cycle of destruction and reconstruction that they keep going through, setting the relationship on fire only to rebuild it and let it crash again. Ultimately, the bridge implies that neither of them is quite what the other thinks they are, as they both play with fire and add to the destruction.
The song's theme of addiction and self-destruction is reflected in its title, "On Fire," which suggests a burning intensity that cannot last. The lyrics also use fire and burning imagery, as well as the metaphor of addiction to describe the intense but ultimately harmful relationship. The repetitive structure of the chorus reinforces the idea of a cycle that keeps repeating. The song's sound is a mix of rock and pop, with a catchy melody and guitar riffs that complement the emotional intensity of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
I’ve got no shame because I never let you walk away.
I am unashamed because I never allowed you to abandon me.
And you got no time for games, but you let them happen anyway.
You claim to have no time for games, but you still participate in them regardless.
And it’s you that always seems to break and has to pay the price.
It is often you who gives in and suffers the consequences.
But that’s the thing about mistakes you never make the same one twice.
Mistakes are a learning experience that you do not repeat.
Don’t you want it?
Do you not desire it?
So do I.
As do I.
You can have it, but so can I.
While you can possess it, so can I.
I set it on fire just watch it burn down again.
I ignite it in flames and observe it disintegrate once more.
And I build it back up just to let it come crashing in.
Then I rebuild it just to allow it to collapse once more.
You been strung out like this before but you can’t keep coming back for more,
You have been addicted to this before, but you cannot keep returning for more.
So I light it on fire just to let it cool down again.
Therefore, I reignite it in flames just to allow it to cool once more.
Maybe I got no restraints because I always know what to say.
Perhaps I lack inhibitions since I always know what to say.
And you got no complaints because you let it happen anyways.
You do not complain because you let it occur regardless.
Guilty pleasure’s poisonous, and takes away your innocence.
Indulging in guilty pleasures can be toxic and deprive you of purity.
It’s got you feeling dangerous and it breaks your self defense.
It makes you feel risky and shatters your self-protective mechanism.
But don’t you want it?
Do you not desire it?
So do I.
As do I.
And you could have it, all tonight.
You could obtain everything tonight.
You never knew it could feel this good but it never turns out the way you think it should.
You did not know it could feel this euphoric, but it never materializes as you expect it to.
And I’m never quite who you think I am but it’s you that puts the matches in my hands.
I am never precisely who you imagine me to be, but you are the one who gives me the means to ignite.
Contributed by Layla G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.