Caleb Fireal

Originally posted in Finnish, it has been translated by Kaheli and, with Caleb’s permission, posted here for you, the fans, to read. If you wish to read the original, you can find it Here

‘The Beginning: A Look Into The Man Behind Caleb Fireal’

The Humble Beginnings…

Former Bleak and current Fireal singer, Caleb, spent his youth as ‘not so popular’ amongst his peers. Even though he got along relatively well with other students, Caleb and his brother still found themselves the target of bullies at school. However, as Caleb says, he did experience more openness and honesty amongst his peers than the most popular students. He was able to be himself, and he didn’t have to pretend anything. He wasn’t a troublemaker in school nor was he a model student, he was a silent dreamer who remembered to do his homework once in a while. But he believes that it was meant to happen that way and without his interest in music he wouldn’t be in this situation that he is in now. The school system didn’t fit to young Caleb, he appreciates individual learning more than a system that puts everyone into the same mold and everyone is expected to progress at the same speed.

The Talent Emerges…

By the age of 8, Caleb began to write his own songs and by 15, he started his first band. When the inspiration to write stuck, Caleb would lock himself in his room to write music, spending time with the songs through the night and well into the morning while others were outside playing. Although he did occasionally play outside, the time lost with the other kids were a price ‘which one had to pay for music’. Art, especially drawing, and computer games were another strong area of interest for young Caleb. He fondly recalls memories of times spent playing games with his brothers and cousins with a collection of over 300 Amiga games. As a young teen, at the age of 14, he developed a hobby of karate and Kung Fu for increasing his strength.

The Love And Infatuation…

About his youthful infatuations and love affairs, Caleb says ‘I’ve always been this emotional and sensitive person, perhaps too sensitive for a boy, and it was showing in what I thought about girls: where other boys were concentrated on the sex thing, I had over-romantic dreams about the right one. I had a really naive and sweet image of girls which is why I often had a crush easily. The teenage girls, however, seemed more interested in sporty and social types so the crushes would often lead into the lryics of sad songs.

The Pressures Of Youth…

His first experiment with alcohol began at age 12 and by the time he was 17, he drank at parties once in a while but not to the point of ‘being messed up every weekend’. Caleb states, ‘I think the biggest problem with alcohol is the common idea that it’s a ‘cool thing’ to do. It has the youth following in the steps of their parents because it’s exciting. If the thought could be replaced with the fact that it’s a poison that can actually kill you, people might start taking it more seriously.

The Epiphany…

Caleb, as many young teens did, suffered from the typical feelings of setting high standards for himself as well as poor self-esteem which led him to blame himself as well as his parents for these feelings. He does state that despite all that, he had a happy childhood without too many difficulties such as behavioral or substance abuse problems. Music worked well for him as a form of therapy. Caleb had an idea at a young age what he wanted to be, what he didn’t know was exactly what. His thoughts were “When I first saw Pearl Jam Unplugged on MTV, I was so sold on the idea that I decided that’s what I wanted for my future. The feeling was so strong it solved the vision of my future.’

The Words Of Wisdom…

Caleb also talks about young people’s desire to ‘live and experience everything’ which often leads to consequences that are very negative and can leave scars that affect you later in life. He encourages young people to to think, ‘do you really want to belong to a group that follows trends or do you want to go the way that is truly yourself?’ It’s worth it to hold onto your dreams and to work towards achieving them. Self-esteem shouldn’t be damaged by the pressures of the media and we all have to remember that every person is unique. ‘Be yourself – live your own life, not someone else’s life’, Caleb states.

The Words Of Experience…

Caleb wants young people to know, ‘Don’t give up. Never give up. It’s my most important piece of advice. No matter how difficult the your situation in life is, try to find something around, your close ones, your dreams, something to hold onto. The most important thing is that you do hold onto them and don’t let go. Because sooner or later, you’ll realize that while it was a difficult situation where you were, it was just a passing storm – every storm goes away some way and at some point in your life become a piece of the past. Somehow you must weather the storm and move forward – and believe me, you’ll thank yourself for doing so. Some things can’t be understood at the moment they happen but later, as they appear less brighter to you, they’ll make more sense in the end!”