Hear Dierks Bentley’s Evocative New Song From ‘Only the Brave’
On June 30th, 2013, 19 firefighters from the Granite Mountain Hotshots were killed by a wildfire near Yarnell, Arizona. Next month, the new film Only the Brave will recreate that tragic event, and playing a central part in the film will be a new song from Dierks Bentley, “Hold the Light.”
This isn’t the first time that Bentley, a native of Arizona, has been a part of paying tribute to those who died in the Yarnell fire. That same year, he organized a benefit called the Country Cares Concert, raising over a half million dollars for families of the victims. He co-wrote “Hold the Light” with Bon Iver member S. Carey, Jon Randall, and Joe Trapanese, who composed the film’s main theme and helped Bentley incorporate it into his own song.
Sparsely arranged with guitar and strings, “Hold the Light’s” lush, atmospheric feel is filled out by Carey’s unmistakable harmonies. With its mournful tone and refrain to “never say goodbye,” the song has a sad, climactic sense of foreshadowing, a love song interspersed with both natural beauty and overhanging finality.
Only the Brave, directed by Joseph Kosinski (Tron: Legacy) and starring Josh Brolin, Jeff Bridges, and Miles Teller, hits theaters October 20th. Bentley is nominated in the Best Male Vocalist category for the 2017 CMA awards, which air on ABC at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 8th.