LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Capt. Michael Renn had a few minutes before dinner with the rest of the crew at Louisville Fire Department’s Engine 2.
What You Need To Know
- Four Louisville firefighters perform in a band together
- The band's name, Quickline, is a reference to firefighting equipment
- The firefighters work at stations around the city
- They have been performing together for about six years
With diving gear from training that day drying out behind him, he sat down for a quick jam session with Sgt. Alex Eckert — fellow firefighter and fellow band mate.
"I think it started off with me kind of probably just playing guitar, bringing my guitar up to the fire house, and then bumping into actually…our lead singer,” said Renn.
Lead singer and harmonica player Capt. Sam Pierce works out of Engine 15 and Sgt. Trevor Dixon, on the drums, is at Engine 9.
Eckert plays bass and also works out of Engine 2.
“The name of our band is Quickline,” said Renn. “On our engine companies, it is the first line that we would pull off. It is our go-to hand line with water in it that we take into a structure."
The band has been together around six years and plays anywhere from Fourth Street Live to chili cook-offs and bars, Renn said.
“When we go out and play, we have this fire department following, this brotherhood that comes out and supports us and just comes out and has a good time, so there may be 40, 50 firemen that come out to see us on any given night,” he said. “It’s a whole lot of fun.”
The music gives them a chance to decompress in a job that can send them into high-stress situations at any moment.
"Having so many guys around here getting to know them and what we call brothers and then being able to do something outside of the fire department where we can all kind of relax and be ourselves a little more, that makes it a lot more fun,” said Eckert.
The band performs country, classic rock and more. Visit their Facebook page to learn more.