Videos|July 29, 2015 09:36 EDT
5 Heavy Bands Christian Music Fans Want to See Release Another Album – UnderOATH, As Cities Burn, & More [VIDEOS]
Christian rock music is having a bit of a resurgence the last few years with many unique and creative groups putting out quality music. At the same token, many formerly more popular bands are getting back together to create music or tour again. With that being said, there are still a number of bands that have been dormant on the music front, and it has left fans screaming "come back!"
UNDEROATH
Where would this list be without starting with the "biggest and baddest" of the list. UnderOATH essentially became legends in the post-hardcore/screamo genre because of their ability to change the landscape of music with their inventiveness. Every one of their albums sounded more unique and more polished as they went along.
They exploded with 2004's They're Only Chasing Safety by taking the rougher sounding The Changing of Times and the older more death metal stuff, and infusing it with pop-punk like choruses sprinkled throughout. The back and forth dynamic of singing and screaming with two different leads was also something that began to be mimicked throughout the scene.
Define the Great Line and Lost in the Sound of Separation only helped them to cement their legacy, and even when founding member and vocalist Aaron Gillespie left, they still managed to be on top. They released their last record Disambiguation with just Spencer Chamberlain doing the lead, and managed to still kill it all the same.
This all ended in 2013 when the band called it quits with a final tour that saw the band perform to sell out crowds every night.
They documented this tour and recently released a documentary about it called, 'Tired Violence' that's out now.
AS CITIES BURN
ACB came out strong with their 2005 release Son I Loved You at Your Darkest. They arrived at the peek of the hardcore/screamo era and at the time were almost up there with UnderOATH in popularity. However, that time at the top was short lived as lead vocalist T.J. Bonnette decided to part ways with the band.
As Cities Burn contemplated breaking up but after some hardship, continued on with two more albums with T.J.'s brother, Cody at the helm. However, while the new music they put out captured more mature and musical sounds, they never recaptured the original heavy fanbase.
The band hung around for a few more years and switched back and forth between being active and inactive before somewhat breaking up.
10 years later the entire band, including TJ, is back together and celebrating their 10 year anniversary of SILYAYD with a small 10 day tour with friends in Emery.
Also, drummer Aaron Lunsford is writing a book that will document the early days of the band called, 'BackStage: How I Almost Got Rich Playing Drums in a Christian Hardcore Band'.
THRICE
Never at any point during Thrice's career were they classified as a Christian rock band, but the evidence of God-inspired lyricism has always been at work in them. Frontman Dustin Kensrue is a Christian, and over the last few years of him being solo, he has cemented himself as a worship leader and the voice of Christian rock fans.
Songs such as "Image of the Invisible" and "Come All Ye Weary" have become staples and fan favorites of the band without even explicitly mentioning Jesus.
The band got back together earlier this year, and it will be interesting to see which direction they go in if new music is indeed in the plans. Thrice started as a punk band slowly moving toward hardcore, then eventually achieved their most success in post-hardcore before settling into alternative indie folk rock. Over the last few years Kensrue has been predominantly recording folk rock worship, so who knows what's next.
Their last release was 2011's Major/Minor, and 2012 wa their farewell tour. The final show was a 33-song setlist that was voted on by the fans.
DEAD POETIC
Dead Poetic is truly the saddest story of this list. DP was never as huge as these other bands but they were certainly getting there.
Their first record, Four Wall Blackmail was heavy and dark. Lead vocalist Brandon Rike's screams were guttural and raw and musically it felt the same way. With their second release, New Medicines, the band polished their sound and just about everything got better. The songs were intricate, deep, and filled with vivid imagery. Again, this was during the best time for this genre of music, 2004.
However, their followup, Vices, was a complete 180 from the band. They dropped the screaming and the melodic hardcore and turned into something reminiscent of early 90s rock, this Stone Temple Pilots. Understandably fans felt a bit confused by the drastic change in sound, but they were willing to follow the band regardless.
Dead Poetic announced a huge tour to come with the release of Vice, but canceled it right before they started. There wasn't much reasoning outside of Rike deciding to leave the band a month before the release.
The initial story was DP was going to continuebeing a studio a band and that a new record would come...it never did. In fact, nothing ever came out of DP over the last almost 10 years except for a greatest hits with some unreleased demo tracks.
BLINDSIDE
Hailing from the country of Sweden, these Scandinavian rockers took America by storm in the early 2000s with their incredible major label record Silence. After putting out moderately successful indie records, a self-titled and A Thought Crushed My Mind, that got them noticed by Tooth & Nail Records. It was a co-sign and tour by P.O.D. that elevated this band to the next level.
At the time P.O.D. was at the top of their game with Satellite churning out hit after hit, and rap rock/nu metal still in full swing. Blindside's followup, About a Burning Fire, continued their upward swing until things began to slow down. After a number of hits, "Pitiful," "All of Us," and "Sleepwalking" the band would go on to release The Great Depression without much fanfare.
Then poof, the band was off the map for around five years until 2011's With Shivering Hearts We Wait seemingly came out of nowhere. Even still, since then all has been quiet for the band until just a few weeks ago when they announced a one off reunion show in NYC.
On October 10th Blindside is coming to the United States for the first time in four years to play Silence in its entirety for the first time. Upon making the announcement their fans absolutely went nuts and when tickets went up they went out fast.
Did we miss any bands? Which band would you most love to see a new album by?
