#PlatVnyl6 The Nominations Begin: Folk/Folk Rock Video of The Year

We are about to get underway. I am going to go about things a little differently for #PlatVnyl6 and we shall see how things pan out.

The Nominees for Folk/Folk Rock Video of The Year for #PlatVnyl6 are: Little Bird by Misty Edwards; Neosho by +Jennifer Knapp ; Not Enough by +The Vespers ; Psychosocial by +brooke fraser and Yahweh by The Brilliance. 

Here is the playlist.

Next Up is Adult Contemporary/Inspirational Video of The Year. Like I said, we are underway. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Polar Vortex Polka Redux: The 2015 2nd Quarter - Folk Music

Welcome back to our announcement of the 2nd Quarter of 2015 Pool Eligible Entries. We are moving through the field in brisk order. We now come upon Folk Music, and its harder edged sibling, Folk Rock. Here we go

Folk/Folk Rock

• The Brilliance - Brother
• Copperlilly - Copperlilly
• The Grey Havens - Fire and Stone
• Drew Holcomb and The Neighbors - Medicine
• I Am They - I Am They
• The Vespers - Sisters and Brothers

Again, purely coincidentally based on Alphabetical order, The Vespers is the last one mentioned and it is also a Perfect Album. But once again it is well earned. Hard to believe but this is only the third album by The Vespers. They have been cranking out excellence like they've been around for decades. Rock Music is next. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Music Video Monday: Oh Mama a Volcano

Welcome to the return of Music Video Monday. I have decided to bring this back as a sign that things are getting back to normal. Now that the nominations for #PlatVnyl5 are updated, we can get back to the flow of things, and Music Video Monday is part of that flow.

We begin with a new video by Former The Civil Wars Lead singer Joy Williams. It's a timely video called Woman (Oh Mama). One word of warning, though. We have a lot of shots of Joy "Tastefully nude" I shall say, so there may be a NSFW for the squeamish. I wasn't offended, but a little shocked. She is a beautiful woman.
Next up, we go to rap, and Rapture Ruckus. This has been a strange journey for this band and the Platinum Vinyl Awards. Invader Volume 1 was, eh. Ok. I passed on it. Invader Volume 2 I loved. And I loved Invader Deluxe. He got some help from Jonathan Thulin for the music video of Volcano. Love his epic videos
And finally we got to a just discovered just posted live video by The Vespers. What? It's Not enough? You'll have to wait for next week.
That does it for the return of Music Video Monday. See you next Monday. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Night Beat Rewind: February 2015

We are up and running in 2015. There were open 30 releases this month. Of course, not all of them will be covered here. Two wound up being spoken word and one was classical. Of course, they weren't exactly the judges cup of tea, so they were unceremoniously dropped.

We begin with a few songs, or as we like to call it

The Singles Scene

• Audio Adrenaline - Love Was Stronger 3.50 Emeralds
• Family Force 5 - Hold Your Hand 4.50 Emeralds
• Fireflight - We Are Alive 4.50 Emeralds
• David Glenn - Church Triumphant - Single 4.50 Emeralds

Hearing the first single from AA 3.0 as it has been dubbed has cemented my opinion that they should hang it up. Fireflight shows promise. I mean, it is still Dawn, but it's a bit poppy. Not everything can be For Those Who Wait, but I think when they finally release an album it will be more than enough rock. The following can not be said about our first grouping.

Missing The Mark

• Christ Fellowship - Like No Other 3.75 Emeralds
• Roy Fields - Stand Up 3.75 Emeralds
• Darlene Zschech - In Jesus' Name: A Legacy of Worship & Faith 3.50 Emeralds

I like to think that I am the toughest on the Modern Worship genre. There are so many "Zschechies" out there, some which literally go all "Single White Female" in copying Darlene's dress, hairstyle and everything. It's downright spooky. Unfortunately all of them, including Hillsong, have pretty much rested on their laurels and mail it in, expecting everyone to applaud anyway. Maybe I overcompensate, but I look for bands that break out of the Hillsong Mold.

No mold grows on our next grouping, however.

Pure Platinum Perfection

• Red - of Beauty and Rage [+digital booklet] 5 Emeralds
• Skrip - Renegades Never Die 5 Emeralds
• Sumerlin - Runaways (Deluxe) 5 Emeralds
• The Vespers - Sisters and Brothers 5 Emeralds
• Virtue - Testimony Reloaded 5 Emeralds
• Yancy - Little Praise Party: Taste and See 5 Emeralds

This was a loaded month, and I couldn't be more pleased. On the flip side, however, I can announce that the Night Beat Candy Store is now officially open. Six perfect fives in February equals a lot of editing again to come up with a best of in December.

Of course most releases fall somewhere in the middle, or what we like to call

Semi-Precious Metal

• Crystal Aikin - All I Need 4.75 Emeralds
• Dave Barnes - Hymns for Her 4.50 Emeralds
• Bridgecity - Christ Be Glorified 4.75 Emeralds
• The Brilliance - Brother 4.75 Emeralds
• Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir - Pray 4.75 Emeralds
• Jeremy Camp - I Will Follow 4.75 Emeralds
• Davis The Band - Only Your Love 4.50 Emeralds
• Dee-1 - 3's Up - EP 4.75 Emeralds
• Benita Farmer - Mender Of Me 4.50 Emeralds
• Aaron Gillespie - Grace Through the Wandering 4.50 Emeralds
• Brandon Heath - No Turning Back 4.75 Emeralds
• Inspire Music - Inspire 4.50 Emeralds
• Mat Kearney - Just Kids 4.75 Emeralds
• Jon-Micah Sumrall - Faith & Family 4.50 Emeralds
• Various Artists - Risen Powerful Gospel Resurrection Songs 4.50 Emeralds
• Various Artists - WOW Gospel 2015 4.75 Emeralds

That concludes this edition of Night Beat Rewind. For the first time I believe I have even linked the Missing The Mark entries. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Chicks, Chicken, Pickin and grinnin

Sometimes I am amazed by the low attendance at some Christian Concerts. I mean, what do you have to do to get the seats filled? Small Intimate venue with table seating? Check. Free Food? Check. College Credit? Check. Great Music? Check.

Did I mention the concert was FREE! Oh, and the band happens to be fronted by two beautiful girls with great legs (Yes, totally chauvinistic remark from a Guy, deal with it). Check out the picture and tell me I'm wrong. 

Phoebe (l) and Callie (r) Cryar of the Vespers

The Band in question is The Vespers. A Folk Rock band out of Nashville, Tennessee. If you've not heard of them before, don't feel bad. I "discovered" the band back last April with the release of The Fourth Wall . It was the first I heard of them, but in fact it was their Second Album. The debut was called Tell Your Mama, and was released back in 2010. They are a brother/sister act, so to speak. The Sisters, who do all the vocals, are Callie and Phoebe Cryar, aged 22 and 20 respectively. They are the Children of 80's CCM Rock Star Morgan Cryar. The brothers are Bruno and Taylor Jones, 21 and 23 respectively. They are a talented bunch.

• Callie Cryar: Guitar, Ukelele, Banjo, Electric Bass
• Phoebe Cryar: Banjo, Guitar, some ukulele, occasional mandolin and accordion
• Bruno Jones: Guitars and other stringed instruments (mostly upright bass)
• Taylor Jones: Drums and Mandolin

The Davis Auditorium at Nichols College was set up with tables seating 7. There were maybe 9 of them. I think there may have only been about 20 or so actually there. The concert began with the band's only cover tune, Grinnin In Your Face by Son House. That really set the tone for a high energy banjo picking night, made for dancing (the only invitation was ignored.

The Short concert (about an hour give or take) consisted mostly of songs from The Fourth Wall (in addition to Grinnin', Better Now, Flower Flower, Got No Friends and Will You Love Me were featured). Two new songs from an upcoming third album were played plus Tell your Mama and Pick a fight from the debut. The concert closed with Close My Eyes, one of their hardest songs ever. I'll close with it too. Rarely does a concert come close to some of the energy on an album due to Murphy's Law. This time Murphy was nowhere to be found. Until next time, Tell Your Mama, or anyone else you know, that I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The Wait of Glory

Here at The Night Beat we pride ourselves at calling it as we hear it. We're not going to fawn over an artist or bands release just because everybody is doing it, and, as you already may know, we pretty much adhere to a once saved always saved doctrine, musically speaking as well, where the industry is known for purges over various indiscretions.

This post is somewhat of a second look on an artist whose work I had panned in the past. Last Spring I posted a review of Thrift Store Jesus, and due to hiss and distortion, which while explained by the artist still drove me batty, I was kind of cool on the album. Add to that a level of profanity that I was uncomfortable with in a release toted by the Christian Market, and I gave it a bad rating, though not as bad as some.

Part of the re-assessment of +Heath McNease  was due to a release by P.O.D. a few months later. It created quite a stir when, though muted, the f-bomb was pretty evident on the last song. The band got away with it by the creation of a Christian Edition which omitted the song, thus depriving some of another purge.

Which brings me to two releases, one in 2012 and one this year, entitled The Weight of Glory: Songs Inspired by the Works of C.S. Lewis. Due to a number of reasons, not excluding my previous review of TSJ, the first work fell through the cracks. That is rectified here. The titles of the songs are also the titles of Lewis works.

1. The Great Divorce
2. A Grief Observed
3. Mere Christianity
4. The Problem of Pain
5. The Four Loves
6. The Screwtape Letters
7. Edmund
8. Perelandra
9. Till We Have Faces
10. Surprised by Joy
11. The World's Last Night
12. Weight of Glory.

What, nothing from Narnia. Oh well. This is a very good album, but part of the problem with it is a certain lack of direction. The album is mostly Adult Contemporary/Inspirational, with some Alternative and some Folk or Folk Rock. In hindsight, since the Third Platinum Vinyl Awards, for which this would have been eligible, are already awarded, this would have gotten a respectable 4.50 Emeralds. Unfortunately this wouldn't have been enough to win because this was the year of the Goliath. In Folk Music there was The Vespers. In Adult Contemporary you had Moriah Peters, Michael W. Smith, and genre winner Lara Landon. Then in Alternative you had four Buzz-saws. The release would have been washed away in the Current of Sarah Macintosh, The Wild Things on the Paper Route attacked it. It was drowned out by The Loudest Sound Ever Heard, before finally succumbing to he who being dead yet singeth, Abel.

That brings us to The Weight of Glory, Second Edition: A Hip Hop Remix inspired by the works of C.S. Lewis. The content is the same, though the order is adjusted. Now while the album is advertised as hip-hop, for someone who's experience with the genre is DC Talk and Group 1 Crew, I would sort of go with Alternative here, though I'll give the artist his pick. A lot of the tracks sound like Future of Forestry, which to me is a big plus but to Mr. McNease, I don't know. Not all the songs work, but since the style is consistent throughout, the album works better as a unit, so I'm giving it a nit pick perfect score of 4.75 Emeralds, just so I don't hand out 5's as candy. One nitpick that didn't affect the score. You would think a song called The World's Last Night would have been the last song, both due to the title and it feels like a perfect ending. It's the penultimate song on both albums.

Hip Hop is a little light on entries this year, so I like TWOG's chances, but we shall see about that next year. You can get both of these for a tweet through noisetrade. Click on the album titles to get yours. You won't want to upgrade. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Sonic Awakening: 3rd Qtr 2012 Nominees - Children's Folk Rap

We begin the process, as we do each quarter, of revealing, by category or genre, those releases that I believe are worthy of going into the Platinum Vinyl Award Pool. Some of the genres aren't as prolific as others, and, as is the case, we combine them into one post. We begin with one such post. This time we will combine the Children's Music, Folk/Folk Rock, and Rap/Hip-Hop genres, which, this quarter, had 2, 1, and 3 entrants, respectively.

Children's Music

• Martha's Trouble - A Little Heart Like You
• Various - Faith, Hope and Lullabies: Sing Me to Sleep

Not much here. Martha's Trouble made the inaugural Platinum Vinyl Awards in Folk/Folk Rock and other categories for Anchor Tattoo. This is a different direction from them.

Folk/Folk Rock

• The Vespers - The Fourth Wall

While there weren't any real entries to pick from, one is all it takes, and this one was a doozy. This one should go far this year. Not predicting Barton Hollow style success, but it should do well.

Rap/Hip Hop

• KJ-52 - Dangerous
• Manafest - Fighter
• Trip Lee - The Good Life

Three solid releases from three established artists. I was only a little disappointed that there wasn't a solid new artist in this category. One more quarter to find one. By the way, check out my review of The Fourth Wall by clicking on the link. And don't forget to Like The Nightbeat on Facebook. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Music Video Monday: Will You Love Me

Welcome back everybody. I hope you all enjoyed your long fourth of July break. (Yes, I know the 4th was on a Wednesday and that supposedly trashed all the 4th of July Weekend plans, but we must remember our Government Bureaucrats. They Made it work.)

As I said last week, we begin with the third quarter videos this week. If you've been following me for any length of time, you know I'm not a big fan of Country Music or Southern Gospel. However, if you can push it to Folk or Folk Rock, I will go for it. You have to like good banjo picking talent.

We begin with one of those talents. The Vespers, two brothers and two sisters with some great writing and some awesome bluegrass style rock. I believe the two sisters are Morgan Cryar's kids but don't quote me on that, though their names are Callie and Phoebe Cryar. We begin with the music video for Will You Love Me, from their recently released album The Fourth Wall.

One more from The Vespers. This is Close My Eyes, done live at the Music City Roots Festival.

We must move on, and we move on quickly, because there really aren't that many videos out yet for these new releases. One of my favorite female singers these days happens to be Lara Landon. When I heard her debut Beloved a few years ago, WOW. The girl has pipes. She is the prototypical Torch singer. Noisetrade says her voice "smolders". Trust me it ignites. Still looking for that DDMHO/Lara Landon Speakeasy Tour. This is The River.

I'm torn on the concept of Lyric Videos, which are kind of like the follow the bouncing ball songs on old movie shorts. I think this one merits. Straight from the Veggie Tales patch, here is Vanna Banana (sorry, Moriah Peters) and I Choose Jesus.

That seems like a good way to end a post. We usually fly through the early genres (Nothing for Children's Music, only a few for folk, and Landon and Peters are AC/Inspirational). For further information on the Vespers and Lara Landon, click on the links to my original reviews. Also, for news that doesn't make the blog, be sure to like The Night Beat on Facebook.Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Lawdy, Lawdy, That's a fine looking Vespa

Actually its Vesper. Unlike the Italian scooter, The Vespers are a Folk/Bluegrass/Americana group from Tennessee. Now your intrepid blogger is not opposed to Folk, just country, and to some that is a very fine line, but I walk it.

Now some would say that I have already stumbled into country with my appreciation for The Civil Wars, but they call themselves folk and I accept it. On the other hand, the girls of Point of Grace now trigger my gag reflex, as they are full on y'all country (Christmas Music excepted for some reason). Of Course Folk Rock is always a staple of mine (Thank You J Knapp). Talent can always overcome my bias, of course. A case in point would be Dennis Agajanian. Technically he could be Country, but you've got to admire a person who can pick a guitar as fast as he can. That kind of talent transcends genre.

The Fourth Wall is the second album by the Brother-Sister Folk act. Actually two brothers Bruno and Taylor Jones, and two sisters, Callie and Phoebe Cryar (I wonder if they are related to Morgan Cryar). Oh, they write all their own songs (only Grinnin In Your Face isn't written by them).

They first single released was Better Now, which was based on the Man Born Blind. I knew right then that this was something special. Last year I locked on to The Civil Wars as a genre defining release in the Folk Category. This time I think it definitely is The Vespers. If you like Banjo Pickin, try Will You Love Me, Rock out to Got No Friends and Close My Eyes. There is something for everyone here. Even a simple piano tune like Winter. Don't take my word for it. I would like to thank Soundcloud for the opportunity to provide the music to listen to before you buy. This marks a new Era in Night Beat History.


If you have decided that you enjoy the music of The Vespers as much as I do, I would ask that you click on the links and help support The Night Beat while you do. I am giving The Fourth Wall an excellent 4.75 Emerald rating, making it the one to beat this year in Folk. Lawdy what an album. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.