CMC Blog

Most Dreams die a slow death by Chris Taylor

christaylor — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 06:31:16 +0000

It’s 12:23 A.M and I just got back from a 7 mile run with 2 friends (1 of which I just met this evening.) Lately I have found myself drifting off while at work or play thinking about when I can get a run and some decent solitude in. It seems that getting off the couch and pounding out a few miles is exactly what my soul has been craving.

This series of Blogs in general are to document my life as a new artist and the trials and pleasures that ensue. But early this A.M I can’t help but document a deeper yearning. I want to LIVE. I want to get out when I should be sleeping and sweat alongside a few comrades. I want to get over the feeling of failing or succeeding in the music world and get whipped into submission. I feel the closest to Christ while going out for a run. It’s seems that running in the early hours of morning or later at night is the only real option when you have a family and conflicting hobbies☺

I think after having my first record out for a few months and getting ready to go back out on tour I find myself desperately seeking clarity. How do you remain a faithful husband and father while building a ministry and broadening a fan base? I don’t know. I do know that with every pounding heartbeat, deep breath and lack of words I am finding peace in the struggle. Mixing the joys and frustrations of music with the welcomed pain of building endurance and stamina is a delightful cocktail.

It’s 1:05 A.M and I am thankful. My legs and feet hurt. I’m hungry. But more importantly I’m writing and I am sharing instead of sleeping. I love to sleep and unfortunately I sleep too much. Not tonight.

After meeting my new friend Sean tonight I felt like I knew him better after our run. It was only 6 months earlier I drove past a crazy looking man running bare foot with no shirt who looked just like Jesus or at least the Jesus in my mind. Tonight, God blessed me with a new friend and it came by getting out my comfort. Sean is the guy you throw drinks at while driving by and call crazy because he has long hair, beard and runs bare foot. After tonight I want to take my shoes off and get nailed in the back of the head with your Wendy’s Frosty. I’m all in. I’m reminded of paragraph of one of my favorite books:

“Most Dreams die a slow death. They’re conceived in a moment of passion, with the prospect of endless possibility, but often languish and not pursued with the same heartfelt intensity as when first born. Slowly, subtly, a dream becomes elusive and ephemeral. People who’ve let their own dreams die become pessimists and cynics. They feel that the time and devotion spent on chasing their dreams were wasted. The emotional scars last forever. “It can’t be done,” they’ll say, when you describe your dream. “It’ll never happen.” Pg.139 Ultra Marathon Man, Dean Karnazes

Charge!
Chris

Chris Taylor: Chapter 3

christaylor — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 23:14:36 +0000

I noticed something interesting while on tour. Every venue I played there were flyers up of other Christian artists who either just played the same venue or who were about to play in the coming days and weeks. I guess I always knew there was this kinda “circuit” that Christian bands played but it never became as clear as it did when I joined the circuit myself. I noticed something starting to happen each time I saw these flyers. At first, I would get intimidated by the fact that I was just one of the many artists out there trying to make a name for myself. Certainly, Christ didn’t call us to this mindset but the thoughts were there nonetheless. One day, it occurred to me: I felt called to pray for these artists. If Christ truly is the center of what we are doing then why not serve and support them any way possible. The worst option would be to worry about competing in a popularity contest. We’re in this together.

How many Christians have we seen that have not been encouraged, loved or even corrected for that matter? It would have been really helpful to get an e-mail from someone who was further down the road than I was; I would have loved to receive advice on how to deal with the challenges of being a touring musician. (Although I do have a couple of friends who’ve been around this whole scene and whose wise words are invaluable to me.)
Fortunately, communities are being built in various areas that are connecting artists together who can uplift, pray, challenge, and simply encourage one another in Christ. I came across this beautiful passage from one of Madeleine L’ Engle’s books while dealing with these issues on the road. This passage speaks about Art and the role it plays in our lives.

“A great painting, or symphony, or play, doesn’t diminish us, but enlarges us, and we, too, want to make our own cry of affirmation to the power of creation behind the universe. This surge of creativity has nothing to do with competition, or degree of talent….This response on the part of any artist is the need to make incarnate the new awareness we have been granted through the genius of someone else.”
(A CIRCLE OF QUIET)

We need each other. We need to let go of control and be vulnerable. I am so thankful for the artists who are out there walking in faith. I want to be in their lives as much as possible, and I want them in mine. I welcome that vulnerability. I know that being open to inspiration from other artists (of all kinds- writers, painters, composers) will only strengthen my own art.

Warmly,
Chris

New music from Living Sacrifice!

BradMoistDotCom — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 22:06:17 +0000

So in case you have been living under a rock you probably already know that Living Sacrifice reunited this year and is currently on tour with Demon Hunter. But what you may not know is that the band has recorded and just released 2 brand new songs (Death Machine & The Battle)! The only way to get them right now is via their Bandbox player on their MySpace though I’m sure the songs will be up at iTunes later. So if you have been living under a rock, this will blow it clear off!

New music in the form of digital EP’s

BradMoistDotCom — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:01:08 +0000

More and more bands are releasing more frequent digital EP’s instead of full length CD’s. And I must say that as much as I am a fan of a 10 song album, EP’s are always a nice breath of fresh air and namely fresh music. The Wedding (The Sound The Steel EP) and Family Force 5 (Dance Or Die EP) are 2 bands who have just released brand new music available only digitally at the iTunes Music Store. So if you are looking for some new music that’s cheap, then I’d say download these right away, you won’t be disappointed. But if you can only afford 99 cents right now because you need to pick up your next cup of Starbucks this afternoon then download “Reveal” by The Wedding and “Fever” by Family Force 5. A great EP bridges the gaps between albums and leaves the fans still wanting more and these accomplish both.

Relient K goes country

BradMoistDotCom — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 17:39:51 +0000

Relient K is getting ready to release a new album…kinda. It’s really 2 albums on 1 cd titled “The Bird and the Bee Sides” that comes out July 1. The first 13 songs are BRAND NEW and are titled The Nashville Tennis EP. You can check out one of the new tunes, “The Scene and Herd” at their MySpace. The next 13 are rare b-sides that have been remixed and thus titled “The Bird and the Bee Sides”. You can pre-order it now HERE and here’s some more info on the new album.

The Bird and the Bee Sides begins with a baker’s dozen of original new tunes collected under the moniker of The Nashville Tennis EP. With all five members writing and taking turns on lead vocals, it’s perhaps Relient K’s most diverse effort to date, including Thiessen’s alt-country “At Least We Made It This Far,” bassist John Warne’s “The Last, The Lost, The Least,” which is explosive both sonically and in its social commentary, and new drummer Ethan Luck’s punk rock reggae “No Reaction,” to name but a few highlights. As for the “Bee Sides” Relient K remixed and re-mastered 13 tracks, including an acoustic version of hit single “Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been”. There are also tunes from The Vinyl Countdown, The Employee Of The Month EP, The Creepy EP, The Apathetic EP and, as Thiessen puts it, “a ton of other stuff that you can’t even find on the internet – at least not yet.”

Also, don’t forget to catch these guys rock out all summer long on the entire Warped Tour!

Sojourn Community Church

mattconner — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 18:20:11 +0000

Indie worship.

Indie worship?
It almost sounds laughable. But there are churches out there making beautiful worship music on their own. And last time I checked, without a label or some sort of major mainstream presence, that qualifies them to be highlighted in The Independent Life.

The music of Sojourn Community in Louisville is absolutely stunning – far beyond the normal church music you and I sing each Sunday. Their latest recording, Before The Throne, has received numerous accolades from various media outlets, including a rare five-star review in Christianity Today.

On their website, you can check out a few clips and chord charts for various songs. I am personally a big fan of “We Are Listening,” so that’s where I recommend starting. You can check them all out here:

http://www.sojournmusic.com/2007/08/06/before-the-throne/#more-34

Also impressive is their Christmas music collection (which I realize isn’t the time or season for). We’d be remiss to not cover that, however, since their discs are so poetic, original and beautiful. New Advent-focused discs came out in 2003 and 2007, so there’s plenty to take in here (and spend your money on). I prefer the 2003 disc, even if only for the stunning “Glory Be.”

And don’t look now but you can download the 2003 Songs for the Advent for free at their Last.fm page:

http://www.last.fm/music/Sojourn+Music/Songs+for+the+Advent

Blueberry Pie

andrewschwab — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 21:02:05 +0000

This is one of the most hilarious things I have ever seen, courtesy of Copeland:
check it out

The Newest Noise

andrewschwab — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 20:59:13 +0000

So this inaugural post is less “band information” and more of a list of questions for all who would read. So post your opinions, please, because I want to read them!

So, this may be a bit of a trite topic, but something tells me it cannot be spoken of enough, especially right here, right now. As someone who has been a part of this industry for some time, I have watched the evolution of…pretty much everything that has to do with music in the last few years. And one thing I am noticing is that not only are things changing and changing fast, but they are changing at a faster rate.

And never has been such opposing poles in the music industry.

On one side, there are fans, consumers, who have benefitted so much from recent trends. And by “benefits” I mean with the digital medium becoming more and more prominent, music listeners have increasingly cheaper and easier access to whatever music they want, whenever they want. It seems like there is nothing but upside on the surface in the current context of iTunes, MyZune, Torrents etc.

You really can get music nowadays for next to nothing, and basically as much as you want. And we have so many cool toys these days to play it on!

On the other side of the fence is the industry itself…the labels, the press, the producers, the publishers, the distributers, the radio stations, and of course, the bands. And everyone on that side of the fence has been whistling a different tune for quite some time. As music becomes cheaper, and as attention spans shorten with the accessibility to music, less and less revenue flows through the industry. This means less and less resources for developing new bands, for keeping bands afloat, and for keeping jobs in the industry. Plainly put, the whole thing is shrinking massively in a very short period of time, and it is becoming harder and hard for bands to do this for a living. It is becoming harder and harder for labels to sell music.

People are finding it harder and harder to be a part of this beautiful medium because there just isn’t enough resources to make it possible.

I myself am torn over the issue. On one side, I think this “implosion” (which will continue to feed on itself) will result in a desaturation of everything (less bands = a higher percentage of good bands, and FINALLY METALCORE WILL END). I also love getting music at a cheap price as a consumer. But I also love packaging. I love holding artwork in my hands and reading lyrics. And it saddens me that physical albums are “slowly going the way of the buffalo.” And finally, I do this thing for a living, and all of this threatens the industry that feeds me.

Here are my questions:

How many of you really care that physical albums will be a thing of the past someday soon? Does it even matter to you?

How many of you support the artists you love by going to shows, buying CDs, merchandise, etc.? Do you realize the impact and influence you have by your support?

How many of you aspire to work in the music industry in some form? Do you realize how significant these trends are and how they affect your future?

Now, more than ever before, the power is directly in the hands of YOU. Music is a powerful force, and I for one do not want to see go away in any way shape or form. I want to always have the opportunity to find new bands, to be inspired by new songs. I want to do my part to inspire and to keep this medium alive and thriving. And I really want to know what all you think about all this.

The Southern Way is here

BradMoistDotCom — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:11:47 +0000

Corey Crowder has just released his new single “Southern Way” and you can check it out on his MySpace or at iTunes. This guy is gonna take America by storm, so get ready!

Sleeping At Last

mattconner — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 18:18:45 +0000

When it comes to The Independent Life, we definitely want to pay the most attention to the fringes, highlighting those artists and bands, acts and events that fall outside of your mainstream attention. And while the proper definition of independent usually implies that, we realize that it also technically means ‘without a label.’

Thus sometimes we will highlight independent acts that are quite notable already and some with which you are already familiar. Sleeping At Last is one of those acts.

Why cover such a high profile band? Because I’m sure someone out there doesn’t know about this Wheaton, Illinois trio and, if not, then an independent blog needs to go no further.

Sleeping At Last features the brothers O’Neal, Ryan and Chad, along with cousin Dan Perdue. Their music reaches both intimate and epic and Chad’s tenor is one of the most distinctive, beautiful voices in popular music. Founded by Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan, the trio enjoyed a time on Interscope Records before going their own way on their most recent effort, Keep No Score.

Still that didn’t keep them from enjoying airplay on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy or enjoying tour dates with Yellowcard and Switchfoot. In other words, label or not, here they come.

Here’s a performance of “Needle and Thread” from Keep No Score.