This time, I'm back for real. Yes, for real! So, where are we now? Well, we have quite a bit to catch up on. As one of the things I primarily blog about is music, it's important that I address the changes that have taken place within my favorite bands! First off, I developed an official Top 5 All-Time Favorite Artists list: The Newsboys, TobyMac, dc Talk, Delirious?, and Stellar Kart. Well, that's not so huge, but I felt it was worth saying! ;-) Delirious?, as many of you know, had their last concert together this November (I am sad about their ending, especially as I never got to see them in concert and now probably never will, but I'm fully supportive Martin Smith's decision to devote more time to his family and am looking forward to seeing where everybody goes in the future!). Stellar Kart's long-time and original guitarist Cody Pellerin left the band last Summer, and was replaced by the awesome and hilarious Jon Howard (formerly of the band Dizmas). Oh, and speaking of which, God kindly provided me an opportunity to see Stellar Kart live at Awakening Fest 2009 in September (Jon is perfect for the band!), which may as well have been my first Stellar Kart concert (since the last time I saw them was at the Newsboys' GO tour, when I knew nothing about them); yes, it was AMAZING! I had the great privilege and pleasure of meeting the whole band; it was wonderful to finally be able to say "thank you" and tell them how God's used their music in my life.
Since my last post, I've also attended the Newsboys' Join The Tribe tour in 2009 and the Winter Jam '09 tour (headlined by TobyMac; AMAZING event!) in the same weekend. Reviews will come...eventually...I hope...(okay, this is getting to be a depressing post!) Well, as for that Newsboys concert, it turned out to be more important than I realized when I was there! As you can see below, my last entry contained comments about recent member changes in the Newsboys (well, by recent, I guess I mean year-old and forgotten by now!). Since my last post, there's been yet another change in the Newsboys. Pretty much all of you who might like the Newsboys or follow them a bit know, since it's been almost a year! While I was very sad to hear of Paul Colman's departure in January of '09, I contently welcomed former long-time guitarist Jody Davis back into the band. This following change in the band, however, was far more drastic than the first. I woke up one Sunday morning, March 8th and, quite unexpectedly, noticed rumors circulating on the internet about lead singer Peter Furler leaving the band. Naturally, I was shocked and very confused! As a fan, of course, the idea was sad to me. But while questions would continually pop into my head, I chose not to jump to conclusions, as there hadn't even been a press release yet. Besides, there seemed to be plenty of evidence against it...they were only eight dates into the new Join The Tribe tour (FYI, I had seen the third date of the tour two weeks earlier). They were releasing a new album in a couple of months. Wouldn't it be a little odd for Peter to drop out in the middle of all that? Nah, it couldn't be true. Things just got all the more confusing when a bunch of talk was coming up about Michael Tait (formerly of dc Talk and his band Tait) becoming Peter Furler's replacement. You're kidding, right? Two of the most popular bands in Christian music having a "mash-up?" Two of my all-time favorite bands? That's crazy. Actually, in some ways, it made a lot of sense. Michael had made surprise appearances at a couple of the tour dates, including the one I attended, to sing with the Newsboys on a couple of songs, and they hadn't said why he was there. My sister and I just figured it was a random, but cool idea for an interesting cameo. But it became far more "official" sounding when people on the Newsboys message board who had attended the Acquire The Fire conference in Texas the previous night (the 7th), said that the band came on stage with Michael Tait in Peter Furler's place, and that Michael announced later that night that he was indeed the new lead singer.
Okay, at this point, I could hardly bother being in "fan denial" anymore! ;-) When all was said and done, it made sense. I'll never forget how insane things were getting on the official Newsboys message boards (For the record, I would often keep up with the boards, but I wasn't a member). If I remember correctly, they were actually closed down fairly soon due to the rapid flow of, um..."conversation" that was going on. Of course, what we fans wanted most during that time was an official statement of some sort. So, Inpop Records president Dale Bray made a post confirming that yes, indeed, Peter was leaving, but further details would be revealed as soon as they could get a press release together. We (and by we, I mean me and the rest of the fans) were going crazy waiting for the press release. I was sitting at my computer, probably for a whole hour, watching the Newsboys' website, Inpop's website, and Jesus Freak Hideout like a hawk ;-) When I saw that drummer Duncan Phillips tweeted the words "15 minutes," I pretty much wouldn't leave my chair ;-) Soon enough, the official press release was sent out, saying that Michael would be replacing Peter as lead vocalist and that Peter would continue being involved with the band in the way of writing and production in the studio. Honestly, there was a lot of relief following the reading of the press release! Although it was still sad to hear of his departure, it was relieving to know what was going on! So, there was just one more thing we awaited: A personal statement from Peter himself. Nearly three weeks later, we got that exact thing. A message from Peter was posted on the official site, and I was, once again, extremely thankful for all that God has done in Peter and in the band, and what He has done in other people (including myself) through their ministry. Later in May, the Newsboys released In The Hands Of God, Peter's last album with the band. Amazing album, lyrics praising God for His grace, and somewhat bittersweet and emotional when the album closes with "RSL 1984," which is something of a "farewell song" from Peter. Now, nearly a year later, the Newsboys are helping Third Day headline Winter Jam 2010 with Michael Tait as the new lead singer, and are preparing the release of their new album, Born Again (you can find info at their website). So, there we have it, "the new Newsboys." Is it different? Of course. Does it take some getting used to for fans? Of course. Is God's doing awesome things through it? You better believe it. When all is said and done, it doesn't matter if the music sounds different, if someone's switching positions. Why do you think they used the name "newsboys" in the first place? I love what Peter Furler said in the letter I mentioned earlier:
"newsboys is more than a band to me. It is a group of people: men and women, husbands and wives, sons and daughters pooling together their gifts and talents, making many sacrifices, and believing that together we are all making a difference in telling the good news of the saving power of our Lord Jesus Christ to our generation. I am happy to say that this has not changed."
Now, I just need to change my site layout.
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