Night Beat HOF: 1990-1995

This is where the rubber meets the road. 1996 is 25 years removed from 2021, so we are in the class of 1996. This means that the 90's is 1990-95.

This is the period where things really took off or totally went to Gehenna, depending on your view of things. By the 90's CCM began to settle into distinct genres that, with the exception of Summer festivals didn't exactly fellowship together. In the first two decades there was a kind of community that put everybody together in a Concert. Hey, it was all about the message. Now the message was still there, but you weren't going to have Stryper and Michael W. Smith on the same ticket.

By 1990 Pop had settled into a distinct genre and rock and metal had parted ways. Heavy metal was also beginning to splinter into hard rock and industrial along with metal, which was divided between melodic or symphonic and screamo or thrash. The synthesizer was making a big inroad into the CCM scene at this time and Dance Music began to be more accepted among the saints 

1990 is where we begin. And two of the biggest names of the Decade came from two very separate camps, IONA and Donderfliegen (Darn That Fly), which soon ditched that name for the more recognizable DEITIPHOBIA (Fear of God). IONA is a Prog-Rock powerhouse from the UK. Celtic symhonies meet some of the most talented  musicians around. Metal Mistress LEAH McHenry has been greatly influenced by IONA mainly through the  work of Troy Donockly on The Quest and Ancient Winter. DEITIPHOBIA is best described as the Father of Christian Industrial Music. 

1991 brought us Sorrow of Seven with April Lassiter on vocals and Kevin 131 Gutierrez on Programming and Guitar. Kevin also did Guitar work with DEITIPHOBIA, so there was little doubt that once the band shed it's unwieldy monicker for the more concise Aleixa (pronounced uh-Leek-uh) it would steer the course of Industrial for years to come. The Band is not Unloved.

Ring around the Rosie, pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down. Rising from the Ashes in 1992 was Circle of Dust. The heavier of the two industrial projects of Klayton (Celldweller was more rock) he plays all the instruments himself. The perfect playlist for the Zombie Apocalypse. Speaking of Zombies, our other entry for 1992 is Audio Adrenaline, who has many hits including Some Kind of Zombie.

1993 started a trend which spread like wildfire through the Church. I mean, if you want to go deeper, if you can hear the mountains tremble, or if you can sing of his live forever. If you can you may be Delirious. The British Youth Group band led by Martin Smith revolutionized the Modern Worship genre. Things were truly Jumping in the House of God.

It should be illegal to have so much talent in a small area. Four hours from Littlehampton is Manchester, where the Message To Schools Trust worked with kids in the schools. On Friday they put on a concert for the kids as the World Wide Message Tribe, which made it hip to dance in Church. David would be proud. 

Things were heating up. 1994 was a very active year. I might be tempted to say Kiss Me. Sixpence None The Richer burst on to the scene in 1994, along with Nu Metal Band Payable On Death aka P.O.D. Also making their splash were the synthpop bands Joy Electric and The Echoing Green. You might need a three day weekend.

And 1995 was when Third Day flew in like a Blackbird with their brand of 1970's Southern Rock. Mac Powell and Company created a niche in CCM that Disciple and Decyfer Down were to enter. There aren't too many bands willing to step into the shoes of Bad Company and ZZ Top.

Our final post is next. 1996. The Class of 2021. Until Next Time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Flashback Friday: Simply Delirious?

"Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble?" "Do You Wanna Go Deeper?", The Happy Song, "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" "Shout to The North". Amazing that all these songs came out of one band, one youth group.

The Cutting Edge band, the official worship band for the Arun Community Church in Littlehampton, England was our band. From the beginning the group was able to catch fire among the English Youth, and the band was soon playing before thousands at a time. It only serves to remind me that I went to the wrong church as a kid. I just had Mr. Jehle, An accordion and about a dozen or so kids. Between groups like Delirious? and Worth Dying For, which also started as a YGWP (Youth Group Worship Band), the youth of Today are so lucky.

Once the band outgrew its youth group origins, the name was changed from the Cutting Edge Band to Delirious? and they officially became a Rock band, albeit with a Worship Focus.
Beginning with King of Fools (1997), the band released 7 studio albums in an approximately ten year career.

• King of Fools (1997)
• Mezzamorphis (1999)
• Glo (2000)
• Audio Lessonover? (2001)
• World Service (2003)
• The Mission Bell (2005)
• Kingdom of Comfort (2005)

I was blessed to see Delirious? twice live in concert. Once in a small (too small, actually) setting. The EM Loews Palladium in Worcester. The second time was at The Inside Out Soulfest, which was a more appropriate venue. After all, this is a band which played for 45,000 at Wembley Stadium.

My Only regret is that the youth group world didn't get hijacked by Delirious? like the "adult Church" got by Hillsong. It would have been quite an improvement over typical youth group fare.

There are certain songs by Delirious that have become Iconic, and the best way to explain them is to show them. This is History Maker, a ballad and rallying cry for the Christian Youth of today, and all Christians Everywhere, to change the world they are in for the better. There has been no better example than Delirious?

I could sing of your love forever is another Iconic song. This one is an acoustic with Martin Smith and the audience.

And Lastly, Did You Feel the Mountains tremble. Another music site recently asked if there was any band you wish would reunite. I have a long list. Most people do. Among the biggest would be Delirious? and The Benjamin Gate. Both bands stood out from the crowd of sameness that seems to afflict CCM most of the time. I will deal with The Benjamin Gate at a later time, but I think it can be agreed the world would be a lot better if we could get a little more Delirious? I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Flashback Friday: The Fab 3 - PFR

Joel, Patrick, and Mark. Maybe it doesn't roll off the tongue as easy as John, Paul, George and Ringo, but that's not to say that this trio isn't in the same rarefied air For those not up to date on things, that foursome is The Beatles, the true kings of Rock and Roll (Sorry Elvis). Joel, Patrick and Mark are Joel Hanson (Guitar), Patrick Andrew (Bass), and Mark Nash (Drums) - also known as PFR. (A little side note: The initials stand for Pray For Rain, which is the actual name of the band. However, before they even got started, they were sued and had to change the name to PFR. More on that later.

Having grown up on both The Beatles (as well as the 70's version, Paul McCartney and Wings), and then experiencing PFR, my mind immediately made a connection. Now the analogy isn't perfect, but there are enough stylistic similarities to brand PFR the "Christian Beatles". They are a whole lot more similar than Love Song, in my opinion. So if The Beatles started in the U.S. instead of the U.K., and they could only round up three members, they would probably sound like PFR.

Like I said, the band was originally called Pray For Rain. Did you know that there was already a band by that name? Yeah, I didn't either, and probably neither did this trio. The other Pray For Rain, the one with high priced lawyers, they do nothing but do movie soundtracks for movies like Sid and Nancy (1986). Alex Cox is usually the director of these films.

During their brief career they put out four albums:

• Pray For Rain (1992)
• Goldie's Last Day (1993)
• Great Lengths (1994)
• Them (1996)

Goldie's Last Day is actually about the death of Patrick Andrew's Golden Retriever, and it has some Beatles homages in it.Next up is Great Lengths and Anything
And finally we end with Wonder Why.
These videos are from their 12 in 2012 "Reunion" Tour. I think you'll agree that they still have got it, and I think a full reunion is in order.

Apart form this work with Deitiphobia and other bands, Nash is also married to Leigh Bingham Nash, (Leigh Nash) of Sixpence None The Richer, which will be covered in another post.

That concludes the first installment of The Real Alternative on Flashback Friday. Next Friday we return to the Commonwealth of CCM when our subject is Delirious? Until next we meet, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Music Video Monday: Wonderful

Welcome to Music Video Monday, where we show the top Music Videos in the CCM World. We are now in the midst of the third quarter releases, which just ended last month. It feels good to be caught up, so to speak.

This time around we have a surprise, Modern Worship Videos. We just don't get many of them. Both MW and Gospel usually don't do videos.

We begin with Desperation Band from New Zealand. Their new album Center of It All has a woman doing this cool Middle Eastern sounding yell. The Song is called Our God is Coming. Unfortunately I couldn't find a video for that, but this is Wonderful.

We move on to Bluetree. The band is part of our latest "invasion" in Christian Music. Like Rend Collective, they hail from Northern Ireland. This is Jesus Healer from Kingdom

I think we shall stay with the Mother Country and her former colonies. We began with New Zealand and moved over to Northern Ireland. We shall now take on the band most responsible for merging Rock Music with Worship. Sorry Australia, it's not Hillsong. It's Delirious? from Britain. This quarter The Cutting Edge Years was released. This is a Video of History Makers to honor it..

That is a fitting way to end this edition of Music Video Monday. I really miss Martin and Company. They really need to rethink retirement. Until Next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Flashback Friday: Swedish Metal

No this isn't a post extolling the virtues of Saab and Volvo. This is still a Flashback Friday video post. Music is still the subject. No, I'm not kidding. You know, there is more to music and Sweden than ABBA. Actually, Sweden played a part in Christian Heavy Metal history.

Jerusalem was founded way back in 1975 in Gothenburg, Sweden. Its founder and lead singer was (or actually, is) Ulf Christiansson. Rock always was Second to Jerusalem, Evangelism was at the forefront. They were always proud to be In His Majesty's Service.

The first two albums were simply called Volume 1 and Volume 2. Their Breakout, and the album that launched their first tour of America, was Warrior in 1982. For DJ's like me, the most famous song on warrior was Sodom. Now, don't get your fur ruffled. It was about the moral condition of the entire world now and how "It seems like we've got lots in common, we've evolved in a very strange way. It seems like we've come full circle, Sodom in the world today. This is the complete audio. It's over twelve minutes of Metal Heaven. Jerusalem, like Rez here in the States, never shirked from Social Commentary, and sometimes their music was eerily prophetic. On their album Dancing On The Head of the Serpent, which featured a Snake crushed under a boot, an image to controversial for Swedish Christians, was a song called We're Going to Take Europe, and invoking that "The Walls of Europe are going to fall, by the power of God. As a Word of Faith adherent (Name it and Claim it for you haters), from 1988 to 1991 the word went out, and then the Walls Fell, by the Power Of God. They released an album (in Swedish) called SHE in 2010.
Jerusalem wasn't the only Swedish Metal Band. Leviticus came from Skovde, Bjornn Stiggson was the founder. Most of their albums were in Swedish, but The Strongest Power was released to the United States. While it's not surprising when Christians find songs in the Bible, they usually stick to the Psalms, the official song book. Leviticus took on a more obscure source. Judges, and the song of Deborah and Barak. Leviticus didn't have the staying power of Jerusalem. They disbanded in 1990, but they, along with Jerusalem, paved the way for the Success of Christian Rock in Europe. Delirious, Savior Machine, Iona, they all probably wouldn't have made headway without their Scandinavian brethren taking the original slings and arrows. I mean, when you think of European music, you think of Classical, not Heavy Metal. There probably wouldn't be a Frizon Festival. And the rock tradition continues to this day. Blindside is a post hardcore band that hails from Tumba, Sweden. I will close with a video from their 2004 album (it's the first one I found). This is All of Us That concludes this edition of Flashback Friday. There will be a special Flashback Friday next week. In honor of the 30th Anniversary of Petra's More Power To Ya, I will be doing a review of the album next Friday. Until my next post, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The 2010 Platinum Vinyl Awards: Best Modern Worship Album of the Year

We come now to the modern worship genre, or as some would call it Vertical Music. Some would say that it is not really a genre, but it has become one, and should be honored as such.

The final seven nominees in modern worship were

• ALM: uk - Name Above All Names
• Casting Crowns - Until The Whole World Hears: Live
• City of Life - City of Life Worship
• Delirious - Farewell Show: Live in London
• Charlie Hall - The Rising
• Hillsong Live - A Beautiful Exchange
• Rend Collective Experiment - Organic Family Hymnal 

One might say, Worship is all about giving glory and honor to God, how can you use something as vain as "wow" to honor the best. Actually, that is the best way in this case, more than the other. Since the subject should all be the same, there could be no difference in content, so feel would have to be the judgment. Did you "feel" transported into the experience. In a word "Wow".

The first round produced some upsets, as always a favorite Delirious was among those who didn't make the cut. Even though the album was exquisite, the fact that the band was disbanded by the time of the awards was a major setback. Charlie Hall and Hillsong Live were the other two that failed to rise to the challenge.

A four-way second round between City of Life, Casting Crowns, Hillsong Live, and the Rend Collective Experiment proved tougher than ever to judge. In the end, while Casting Crowns put out their best effort to date, far exceeding, in my opinion the studio version, it wasn't enough, and Hillsong fell a victim to their own high standards and expectations.

And the Winner of Best Modern Worship Album of The Year is:

Rend Collective Experiment - Organic Family Hymnal 

The final voting was intense, and City of Life Church pulled out all the stops. A highly energetic album with a latin flair at times, and plenty of horns. Did I ever tell you I'm a sucker for horns, and strings? In the end it wasn't enough. The Worship group from Ireland, Rend Collective Experiment did worship with a sound quite unlike any other. Movements is their best, and I think there is even a Xylophone on that track, though it could just be bells. Regardless, that unique sound gave it an edge. Worship without sameness. A truly joyful noise.

Six genres have been awarded, four more remain, and the General Field will follow. Up Next is Pop at half past the hour, followed by Hip Hop, Hard Rock, and finally Rock. So keep it tuned here as coverage of the first annual Platinum Vinyl Awards continues, only on The Night Beat.

Start a Love Riot

"We Stand, We Rise, We Give Our Lives"...Thus saith the synthesizer as Love Riot, the latest Release by Modern Worship band Worth Dying For opens. The band is the Praise and Worship Band for Calvary Temple Worship Center of Modesto California, Specifically for its Youth Ministry The Stadium. Don't let that scare you off, it's not like any Youth Group music you've ever known.

I must confess, there are very few times in my life that I wish I was a teenager again. Not that it was such a stressful time in my life, it wasn't. It's just that I enjoy adulthood. Back when I was in youth group our Youth Leader, Paul Jehle, led the singing on his accordion. Yes, you heard that right, accordion. You know we've come a long way since then when you realize that Delirious? was a Youth Group band. The Kids these days are so blessed and don't even know it.

The aforementioned synthesized voice begins a Spoken Word piece set to music entitled Destroy. Spoken word songs can be hit or miss and take a lot of effort to pull off. This one hits it out of the park. For example of a whiff, I refer you to Five Smooth Stones, whose entire album (almost) is done that way. Only the most kind would call any of it singing. Only one song on that, I believe 18 track CD/mp3, entitled four, is actually sung, and it is the best song on the album. It also sounds like it was done by a completely different band. But I digress. Destroy merges seamlessly into the first "song", Savior, which is a homage (Christians don't steal) to The Letter Black song Moving On, with vocalist Christy Johnson doing her best Sarah Anthony imitation.

Speaking of other bands, there are two guest appearances on the album. Trevor McNevan of TFK (that's Thousand Foot Krutch to the uninformed) appears on Through Your Eyes and Henry Seeley of Melbourne Australia's Planetshakers appears on Closer.

Love Riot moves seamlessly from Modern Worship to Rock to Techno so much that it is hard to classify. They finish with a cover of Delirious hit My Glorious, with Johnson assuming the part of Martin Smith. There is even an instrumental piece called (reprise) which follows Power of Your Love and is followed by the hard rock Never Look Back. It is quite an enjoyable ride. So much so that you'll never notice the run time of just over an hour.

My only regret about this CD is, because they are not a "Known Quantity" to me yet, I ignored the preview from NRT until today, the last day. Now I wish I had started Last Tuesday (the 15th). After my marathon listening session I am giving Love Riot by Worth Dying For 4.75 Emeralds (sorry, but Christy Johnson is no Martin Smith). It will make the 2011 PVA entries in Modern Worship, Rock, and Dance, and Provisionally an entry as Best New Artist. If I haven't heard from them until now, maybe a lot haven't. Worth Dying For is Worth Buying For Yourself or the music lover in your life.