Monday, July 28, 2008

Barlowgirl to release Christmas album

According to Alyssa Barlow:

"We just finished up a Christmas album that will be out in September. It’s very “un” Barlowgirl. I hope people are ready for this. We didn’t play one instrument on the album. We worked for about a month arranging the songs. It’s all orchestral. They flew over to Prague and recorded a 68 piece orchestra. It’s beautiful. We decided to do a Christmas album to show people what we listen to, not necessarily what we play."

Read more artist news in our Overheard at the Creation Cafe feature here.

Read our interview with Barlowgirl here.

Monday, July 7, 2008

Delirious Breaking up in 2009

Delirious has announced on their website that they will be breaking up in 2009. According to the press release the decision came about because of Martin Smith's desire to be released from the band to pursue other interests and spend more time with his family.

Read our interview with Delirious here.
Read article about Kingdom of Comfort here.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Barlowgirl to launch "Million Voices" Fall tour

Fervent Records’ sister rock trio BarlowGirl is excited to announce their Million Voices fall headlining tour with fellow Christian artists Jimmy Needham and Brooke Barrettsmith. Starting in Texas on September 10, the tour will run through mid-November and focus on encouraging audiences to speak hope, truth and love to others.

BarlowGirl has also partnered with Mercy Ministries and will share about the organization at their live concert events, urging those in attendance to get involved and help support young women at Mercy who face life-controlling issues. The group plans on raising $1,000,000 to build a new house for Mercy Ministries, whose waiting list is in the hundreds. Each of the members of BarlowGirl has a heart that beats for the young people of this generation struggling with issues such as eating disorders, depression, etc. and is committed to ministering a message of hope to their audience. “We have such a heart for the broken and are honored to come alongside Mercy Ministries’ work in transforming the lives of young women from the inside out,” says BarlowGirl.

Since 1983, Mercy Ministries has provided life-changing services to young women who suffer from various debilitating conditions including drug and alcohol addiction, eating disorders, depression, physical and sexual abuse, self-harm and unplanned pregnancies. The residential program, which is free of charge, offers individualized programs, counseling, nutrition education, fitness instruction, life-skills training and educational opportunities to a diverse population of young women from various socio-economic backgrounds. It is Mercy Ministries’ goal to have each young woman discover purpose in her life and bring value to her community. Mercy Ministries is a global organization with locations in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Peru. For more information about Mercy Ministries, visit www.mercyministries.org.

The Million Voices tour is already scheduled to make a stop in the following cities:

The Woodlands, TX
Waco, TX
Albuquerque, NM
Mesa, AZ
Oceanside, CA
Camarillo, CA
Bakersfield, CA
Redding, CA
Vancouver, WA
E. Wenatchee, WA
Spokane, WA
Kennewick, WA
Salt Lake City, UT
Clarksville, TN
Minneapolis, MN
Greencastle, PA

*More dates to follow*

Read our interview with Barlowgirl here.
Read our review of How Can We Be Silent here.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Krystal Meyers' Third Album "Make Some Noise" coming in September!

Pop artist Krystal Meyers will release her third, in-studio album, Make Some Noise, on September 16, 2008. The 10-track project, entirely written or co-written by Meyers, was recorded in Brentwood, Tenn. at Dutchland Studio, and was produced by Doubledutch (Robert Marvin and Josiah Bell). “This music is fun and energetic and is going to be fun on stage,” says Meyers, who is already performing some of her new songs in concert to enthusiastic response. “It’s a different kind of energy. Some of the songs like ‘S.O.S.’ and ‘My Freedom’ are more guitar-driven, but there are other songs like ‘Shine,’ the first radio single, that are totally 80’s-inspired, fun, dance, pop/rock music. It’s a diverse record that defines my different musical layers.”

“I am really excited about the direction Krystal wanted to pursue with Make Some Noise,” shares Jordyn Thomas, Director of A&R, Provident Label Group. “She is growing into a beautiful young woman and continues to prove her talent as a songwriter and versatility as an artist. She challenged herself to take some new approaches on this record, and brought in new ideas that fully showcase the depth of her talent.”

Musically, the title-track, “Make Some Noise,” is a delicious pop confection, but lyrically it’s a bold call to stand up for what you believe. “It’s about getting out there and making a positive impact,” shares Meyers. “Many people say that my generation is a dying generation; that we’re hopeless and have nowhere to go, but I don’t agree. I think people are more involved. We care about the environment, social justice, politics, those in need - we care about things that are making a difference in our world. It’s important for us to make an impact, but the only way to make an impact is if you are loud about it. You can’t just sit in a corner and be reserved. Live out loud! Make some noise!”

“Shine” (the first radio single) is an upbeat song of encouragement. “That’s my favorite song on the record and it’s so fun to play live,” enthuses Meyers. “Recently, I’ve really learned that I have to be excellent in all that I do. I need to use the talents and opportunities that God has given me, to the fullest extent possible. The line from the song that says ‘nobody’s going to get in the way of my shine,’ definitely sums up what this song is about. I’m blessed to be on this exciting journey, and I’m not going to let anything get in the way of my shine.”

Make Some Noise comprises the following ten tracks (sequence subject to change): “Make Some Noise,” “Love It Away,” “Shine,” “S.O.S.,” “Feels So Right,” “My Freedom,” “Beautiful Tonight,” “Up To You,” “You’ll Never Know,” and “In Your Hands.”

As an artist who has recorded three albums before her 20th birthday, it’s obvious Krystal Meyers has a lot to say, but Make Some Noise reveals a young woman whose faith has grown exponentially over the past couple of years. “I have a more mature relationship with God,” Meyers states. “I’m 20 years old. That’s four years difference between my first record and this record. There’s a lot that goes on within those years---being a teenager and coming into adulthood and then being on my own for two years. There’s a lot of maturity that has happened and a lot of heart changes that have happened.”

A beautiful young woman, always effortlessly fashionable, Meyers is almost an anomaly in today’s culture. In a world where young artists seem to continually wind up as troubled tabloid fodder, she’s a successful recording artist who is incredibly grounded and ever mindful of her platform as an influencer. She’s equally comfortable appearing on the cover of Nylon Magazine (Japan) or speaking to young girls on the Revolve tour, an outing she’s looking forward to this fall.

Meyers first burst on the scene with her self-titled Essential Records debut in 2005, spawning her breakthrough hit “Anticonformity,” a song she wrote at camp before entering ninth grade. Her debut set spawned four top ten singles and also launched her career abroad. Her sophomore album, Dying For a Heart, solidified Meyers’ stature as one of the top artists in Christian music—earning her a second Dove nomination in the female vocalist of the year category--and boosting her audience overseas, earning her major pop star status in Japan. Meyers has performed before more than 400,000 people, and will be part of the Fall 2008, 16-city Revolve Arena Tour.

Download "Shine" at iTunes!
Apple iTunes

Read our interview with Krystal here.

Amy Grant 20th Anniversary Lead Me On tour

20 years since the release of her landmark album Lead Me On, Amy Grant will be doing a 20 city tour in celebration. According to Grant, most of her original band will be touring with her.

So far the following dates have been confirmed on Grant's website:

Jul 12 Carnation, WA
Jul 19 Miami, FL
Jul 28 Colorado Springs, CO
Sep 19 Sioux City, IA
Sep 20 Des Moines, IA
Oct 12 Augusta, GA
Oct 17 Irvine, CA
Oct 18 Bakersfield, CA
Oct 19 Visalia, CA
Oct 22 Escondido, CA
Oct 23 Morgan Hill, CA
Oct 25 Wendover, NV
Nov 18 Greeneville, TN
Nov 20 Hershey, PA
Nov 21 Morristown, NJ

For more information you can visit the Amy Grant website.

New! Read our interview with Amy Grant & Hawk Nelson here.

Read our review of Amy Grant's Greatest Hits CD here.
Read our review of Time Again here.
Read our review of Amy's book Mosaic here.