The Outsiders !!!!

The day finally came for Needtobreathe's third album came out. It was far from a disappointment, could be argued that it was better than the two before. The songs are brilliantly produced focusing more on the instruments it seemed to me. My favorite song, where the album title comes from, The Outsiders is amazing and an all around fun song. The band has seemed to change, but it is a change for the good. Honestly i haven't been able to stop listening to it ... i almost have to make myself stop. It has an even distribution of slower songs with more upbeat songs. This album has help to end my summer just right. Last wednesday night i purchased my Needtobreathe concert tickets for the Bluegill and can't wait to go in october. All in all one of my better music purchases in the last few months, after i purchased Wilco's latest. Now all i am doing is praying that The Avett Brothers don't let me down when their album comes out! Go get this album ASAP it is well worth it.

An Excerpt from a Needtobreathe Interview

This is from an interview about who the band Needtobreathe being christians affects their music, it is a very inspiring message ....

"We don’t set out to write secular songs or Christian songs. We write what comes out. I think that says a lot for us as a band. We don’t have to make Christian songs because we are on a major label and it’s not expected that we do so. We make them because that’s who we are and that’s what we are about. I think people appreciate us singing about something that’s important.

“I was always a big Rage Against the Machine fan. That music was politically charged, and I felt it was more valuable because they believed they were doing something for a cause. You think about Dylan, U2 or any body who feels something that they are saying is important, I think the art is better. And for us, Christianity is something that is important in our lives. It’s not the only thing that’s important in our lives, but then we wouldn’t be relevant to society if that was the only thing we talked about. I don’t think the band struggles with it that much. Sometimes the thing we struggle with the most is the Christian media.”

I ask if NeedtoBreathe has received criticism for not being “Christian” enough and how they’ve been able to handle that criticism with grace. Bear’s answer is incredibly gracious and as he’s observed, “Those people who are the naysayers may be five out of five hundred. They are the loudest, but I don’t believe they are representative of Christians in general. We kind of let that stuff roll off our backs and move forward.”

Seems as if “letting things roll” was a lesson well taught by Bear’s pastor father. “Washed by the Water”, Bear’s personally favorite song on The Heat, was inspired by a specific incident when Bear’s father came under fire by a group at church. Bear has always remembered how well his father handled the situation and felt that his father deserved a tribute for his Christlike reaction to a hurtful situation. The song itself is steeped in gospel overtones, and Bear credits that kind of education in gospel music to being able to play in church at a very young age. “We learned a lot from playing church music and I believe that gospel music is one of the best, if not the best, forms of American music”

What I've been up to ...

I feel like i haven't blogged in years, I'm not sure if anybody reads this blog but i am gonna fill everyone in on what's up with me. This past summer was a blast i worked at the Dauphin Way Child Development Center Summer Camp. Basically i got paid a little over minimum wage, 40 hours a week to counsel children from ages 5 to 10. Honestly this meant me going bowling every monday, swimming on tuesdays, field trips on wednesdays, thursdays theme days and skating on fridays. It was really a job of a lifetime. I am now in my senior year of high school still praying to see what God wants for me and my future. I am open minded i am ready to go where he tells me. And fortunately after working this summer i landed the after school care job at the same daycare. Also a good job i just work from 3 to 6 every afternoon. I am starting my application process for college ... the main college i am interested in is Boyce College which is located in Louisville, Ky. It is located on the same campus as Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. It would really be a great place to go to especially if my future involved going to seminary but i know not what the future holds ... there is only one who does. If you are reading this i would love your prayers and any advice about how to go at the whole college process.