Shane and Shane - Bring Your Nothing

I just got turned onto a band of two men called Shane and Shane. They're an interesting group because they have a slightly edgier vibe going on with their worship sound. I really dig it. Shane and Shane just released their 8th studio album "Bring Your Nothing" and it sounds pretty good so far. If you're into a really nice acoustic worship sound, then this a band that you should know about!

Band Page

The Burial - Wretched Restless Forms

I know I'm almost a week late on this, but I noticed that The Burial just released a new lyric video from their upcoming album "In The Taking Of Flesh" that's due out on July 9th. The Burial always stood out (even since their days on Sancrosanct) as a flat out metal band. I was really happy when they got signed to Facedown Records because I knew they were headed in the direction of more albums. The new song is called "Wretched Restless Forms" and here is the video.

Band Page

Tour Schedule

w/ Becoming the Archetype

May 20 - Albuquerque, NM @ Gasworks
May 21 - Mesa, AZ @ The Underground
May 22 - Canoga Park, CA @ Cobalt Cafe
May 24 - Seattle, WA @ Studio 7
May 25 - Tacoma, WA @ Louie G's Live Music
May 26 - Boise, ID @ The Venue
May 27 - Denver, CO
May 29 - Little Rock, AR @ Downtown Music Hall
May 30 - Fort Worth, TX @ Tomcats West
May 31 - Lafayette, LA
Jun 1 - Pensacola, FL @ The Handlebar
Jun 2 - Tampa, FL @ Epic Problem

w/ Hope for the Dying

Jun 16 - Cape Girardeau, MO @ 4th Expo
Jun 17 - Fort Wayne, IN @ New Republic Skatepark
Jun 18 - Newport, KY @ Thompson House
Jun 19 - Terre Haute, IN @ The Venue
Jun 20 - Kokomo, IN @ Centerstage Bar
Jun 21 - Douglasville, GA @ 7 Venue w/ Becoming the Archetype
Jun 22 - Cleveland, TN @ The Warehouse w/ Becoming the Archetype
Jun 24 - Fayetteville, NC @ The Drunk Horse Pub
Jun 25 - Linthicum, MD @ Linthicum United Methodist
Jun 26 - Wilmington, DE @ The Harmony Grange
Jun 27 - Trenton, NJ @ Championship Bar and Grill

Jul 19 - Wilmar, MN @ Sonshine Fest

The Ultimate Indie Bundle

I've been looking through the Indie Bible the last several weeks and I am realizing that this is perhaps one of the most valuable resources a serious musician can have on hand. You may even remember the very first Indie Bible that came out years ago in bookstores across the US. I remember secretly wanting one, because deep down, I wanted to play music for a living and I knew that this book could help me do that. Well now, 14 editions later, The Indie Bible is still doing the same thing, as it evolves with our ever-changing music industry, only now they have what is called The Indie Bundle. I was even surprised to find my blog in it, as well as tons of listings that I had no idea even existed. Whoever runs their research department must not get much sleep. The Indie Bundle is essentially the Indie Bible E-Book, The Indie Bible Online and The Indie Venue Bible.  So, exactly what is The Indie Bundle?

In The Indie Bible, you will find resources like:

• 2500 magazines and music blogs that will review your music
• 3100 radio stations that welcome independent music
• 1800 labels and distributors that will help you to sell your music
• 1000 promotion, marketing, management, PR and publicity services
• 400 sites where you can upload your band's MP3s or videos
• 190 articles from industry pros that will help you understand the music business better in areas of marketing, contracts, touring, social media, getting airplay, copyright law, how to approach radio hosts and music editors and much more...

• And these numbers are constantly changing (increasing) as they discover new resources.

• The Indie Bible Online has the same benefits the Indie Bible does, but you can export the data into your own database. It also delivers user-friendly search options as well as hundreds of additional listings, that are updated daily. I also found it to be much faster than the E-Book because it allowed me to specifically find what I wanted using drop down menus.

In The Venue Bible, you will find:

• 7 venue directories that have 32,000 live music venues (churches, colleges, coffee shops, theaters, etc.)... as well as 3,500 booking agents in the US and Canada that cover just about all genres. This allows you to plan your tour locally, regionally or nationally. The Indie Venue Bible is in E-Book (Adobe .pdf) format and is updated daily that way you don't waste any time. 

I have personally gone through much of The Indie Bundle and I can tell you that you won't see it all in one sitting. I mean, there is so much to go through. These guys have put together a classic! And so, I am promoting this as a serious resource for serious musicians. If you want to have all these things that I've written about, then you should look into signing up for the free trial and see for yourself. And right now, they are offering all of it for $59.95, when it is usually $340 if all the directories are bought separately. Here is a link on how to get started.

ULTIMATE INDIE BUNDLE PAGE

Tim Lambesis - Murder For Hire

Tim Lambesis used to be a pretty cool dude in one of the best Christian metal bands around, As I Lay Dying. What happened? If you haven't already seen it plastered all over the news outlets lately, on Tuesday, Tim was arrested for plotting to have his wife murdered. A friend of mine who loved As I Lay Dying called me tonight with the news, and honestly, it was hard to believe, but not so hard to understand when you see the direction that Tim was going in his life. As I Lay Dying was one of my favorite bands and the reason that I ever got into today's modern screamo-type metal. I grew up with metal where they actually tried to be understood clearly, and so it was really hard for me to stomach the new metal, but somehow As I Lay Dying broke me in. Over time, I found An Ocean Between Us to be a perfect record, and ultimately led me to buy most of their early catalog. But lets go back to the purpose of this post. Why would a man that apparently gave his heart to Christ turn into a murderer that wanted to end his wife's life?
What caused it?

I think it was a slow, subtle fade.

I remember when their record The Powerless Rise came out. I did what I usually always do with a CD and went to the credits. I wanted to see who they'd thanked and various other information. I saw them thanking the Lord nowhere in there. I tried to rationalize in my mind thinking that well, some people don't need to publicly proclaim thanks to the Lord... Maybe they just did it silently. But, somewhere deep inside, I knew that was wrong and I knew that they were fading. I didn't listen to that album anymore. I said, maybe I'll catch the next one. You see, the whole idea for me, is to not let myself be a part of that potential fade.... If they made a record while fading, then I sure don't want any of that on me.

So, that is where I slowly starting separating myself from them, but I hoped they would get better. But then later on, the worst happened. I saw that they had covered Slayer on their 10th anniversary tribute album Decas. Now, I knew Slayer pretty good, having grown up in the 80's and 90's in metal. They were one of my favorite bands. But, that was a different time for me. A time, when I ignorantly followed satan and didn't know the Lord. To me, Slayer permeated evil. They sang about death, murder, hell and satan. In fact, listening to their music as kids, made us want to do evil. If you don't know about Slayer, just Google their album covers, but don't listen to their music. You'll get the picture just off the album covers alone. So, when I saw that AILD had gone that far, I went ahead and asked Tim Lambesis via Twitter why he would cover Slayer. His answer was strange. He said, "Some of their lyrics I don't agree with, but on this song (War Ensemble) I didn't mind."

So, today I am surprised, saddened and more aware than ever about the power of music. It's no secret that satan was a musician and still is. He uses it because it's a universal language. And it's not just metal. I heard one member of the satanic church (it might have even been Anton LaVey, the founder) say that Frank Sinatra's song "My Way" was one of the most satanic songs of the century. My stepfather Kenny quoted it better than anyone I have ever heard when he said that,

     "Words and thoughts are seeds. Combined with music, they're a powerful force. They may seem very small and insignificant, but can grow into a great influence in our hearts and lives and may possibly govern our future actions as their influence grows."

My purpose in writing this is to encourage my readers to understand the power of music and be careful with what music you listen to and allow to influence your thinking. After all, this is why I started this blog so many years ago. I am not saying that listening to Slayer is the SOLE cause of his actions, but what I am saying is that musicians at that level, or any level, need to set up boundaries, set up accountability partners and most of all, stay so close to Jesus that a piece of paper couldn't fit in between you both. If Jesus asks you to walk away from music, then like David Morrisson (For Today) did, do it. All satan needs is a slight crack to crawl in through, and then once he is in, will wreak total hell in your life. I once heard that some peoples lives are for warnings and some are for examples. Let your life be an example, but learn from those that are warnings. God Bless. Peace.

Hear 2 Heal

This morning I was going through my list of reviews and I finally got to Eliot Sloan's interactive performing arts project called "Hear 2 Heal". You may remember Eliot from being the founder and lead singer of the platinum-selling band, "Blessid Union Of Souls". Well, Hear 2 Heal involves him going into schools and helping the students to create their own performing arts adventure to the music of his band, and then playing that experience out on their school stage to friends and family. Quoting from his website,

"This will give the students an opportunity to be heard and address their issues through the music of Blessid Union and their media of choice (choir/band/theater/AV/dance...), and then heal through the process of expression and opening lines of communication."



I honestly felt moved when I learned about what he was doing. He seems like a caring person that really does want to help kids, and we all know that kids really need good mentors early in their lives, especially during their high school years. I encourage you to get your schools involved and learn more about what Eliot is doing. And please watch this video because it helped me understand it better.

FACEBOOK PAGE

YOUTUBE PAGE



 

Redruth - Origins

I want to make mention of a band today called Redruth. They are one of the great many Australian bands that are putting out awesome music these days. In fact, I was so thrilled that I tapped into that scene, that for a while, that's the scene I was searching through fairly exclusively. December of last year, they put out a new album called "Origins", and it has well-produced music on it that has a nice edge to it. If you ever got into Depeche Mode or the new wave music in the late 80's, then you will really like this band.

Their music has a nice drivin' beat and sound to it, and has a "fresh breath of air" vibe to it that leaves you feeling good. Oh, and these guys are sold out to Jesus, so you won't be lacking there. By far, Redruth is a band that you should have in your collection.

Band Page

Redruth YouTube

Redruth Facebook Page

To Leave A Trace

Every now and then I will come across a band that sets itself apart from the pack. Today, I heard a band from Ukraine called "To Leave A Trace". What I liked most about their song Aokigahara was the total and complete sludginess of it. I mean, it is absolutely HEAVY. The guitarists' in this band really know how to write heavy guitar parts. Overall, this is a band that (if you like metal), you shouldn't miss. They also have a kickstarter for their new album. If you want to support them, please go ahead and contribute.

SUPPORT (Indiegogo)