Author: Loyd Harp

Check out this exciting press release from Resuscitation Records: “Resuscitation Records is proud to announce the upcoming re-release of Clear Convictions’ comeback record, Endure. The newly remixed record will be available on vinyl and streaming on October 24, 2025. “Endure has been fully remixed by Ryan Leitru (For Today), who masterfully breathed new life into an already amazing record. The solid songwriting, excellent musicianship, and burning passion from these SFHC veterans can now be experienced with all of the clarity and intensity that the band originally intended.… Continued →

This hip-hop trio had a laid-back West Coast style. Stylized alternately and inconsistently as either “K2S” or “K II S”, the acronym stood for “Keys to Salvation.” The group was an unapologetic Gospel rap group, consisting of siblings Donald Newman (AKA Smooth) and Jennifer Lee-Newman (Jen-E), and Kabuc (AKA K-Buc). Kabuc left the group in 2004, leaving K2S as a duo for their final album. They released a demo cassette in 1994, and then four full-length albums for a variety of record labels including heavyweights Grapetree Records and Metro One Recordings.… Continued →

Seminal folk artist Jan Krist is working on a new album and is eliciting crowd support for the project. Krist has released 8 albums to date, including such landmarks as 1992’s Decapitated Society, 1993’s Wing and a Prayer, and so many more! (Incidentally Jan is also mother to Amon Krist, first vocalist for dream pop band Velour 100.) Jan is seeking support through a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo with a number of perk levels: Jank Krist Indiegogo link… Continued →

Everdown was a hardcore band from New Hampshire, active in the mid-90s, but their roots were in earlier versions of the band like Crawlspace (who recently had their material re-issued by The Charon Collective) and Dry Bones. Unlike their counterparts from southern California or New York City, Everdown incorporated other influences into their music like post-hardcore and even sludge. Perhaps it was their New England location, or maybe they were simply influenced by a different scene, but with unusual arrangements (for hardcore), and song lengths at times over 7 minutes, their take on hardcore was certainly unique in the Christian scene.… Continued →

Speck was one of those bands that was easy to miss if you weren’t paying attention. They released two albums for Bulletproof/Gray Dot Records in the late 90s. That decade produced a plethora of alternative rock bands. In fact, there were so many that at times it was difficult to keep up, and even harder to wade through them in order to find the gems among the mediocre. Speck, sadly, didn’t make a huge splash like their counterparts in Plankeye, Grammatrain, The Prayer Chain, Poor Old Lu, and the like.… Continued →

Colorado-based indie pop artist Fepeste has just dropped an incredible new single in advance of their upcoming full-length for Velvet Blue Music. The album will be available in October. If this single is anything to go by, that album is going to be worth your time and money. Expect lush, bright, summery sounds that would appeal to fans of Beirut, The Shins, Midlake, Fleet Foxes, Beach Boys, Phoebe Bridgers, and more. Click on the link below to stream or download. And if you enjoy it, consider throwing a buck their way for the effort.… Continued →

Heartbeat started in the early 80s as a music ministry extension of Youth for Christ in the United Kingdom. They initially began as a back-up band for solo performers (like Sheila Walsh), but they also performed as their own band, often appearing in schools, colleges, and even serving as a worship band for Christian events and festivals. As such, they paved the way for later, similarly-minded music ministries like World Wide Message Tribe (except that WWMT were dedicated to the Birmingham area, specifically). Heartbeat’s sound was a distinctly European form of synth-pop: sugary sweet and intensely melodic, not at all resembling the post-punk or new wave fusions of some of their synth peers (New Order, Depeche Mode, etc.)… Continued →

In case you don’t know, The Rumors Are True is a fantastic podcast extremely relevant to our scene. Past episodes have featured Bryan Gray of the The Blamed, Ted Cookerly of Every Day Life, Jeff Bellew of Stavesacre/The Crucified/so much more, and hundreds more. Rumors recently did a double-episode whammy on the band Bleach, an artist long-time IVMers will certainly be familiar with. Fortunately for fans, the band has recently reunited. They are playing Furnace Fest this October in Birmingham, AL and they’re even playing a show TONIGHT in Jacksonville, FL.… Continued →

This Long Beach, California-based band formed in the 2000s and have put out a number of underground releases. Made up of Latin-American believers, songs have been written in both Spanish and English, thus featuring a multi-cultural flair! Their first demo was released in 2006 and was self-titled. It showcased a brutal old school death metal (OSDM) sound, combining elements of thrash, grind and sludge in tempo changes that would leave your head spinning. A split CD with Dissolve Being was also released in 2006, and featured live recordings of songs from Grave Defier, as well as a few additional live tracks.… Continued →

While this artist is known as a sort of darling in the indie folk scene, his roots are in the Christian punk/emo scene of the Pacific NW in the 90s. With connections to Pedro the Lion, Roadside Monument, Poor Old Lu, etc. Jurado released some 7″ singles on the then-fledgling Christian label Tooth and Nail Records. Even his debut was a co-release with Tooth and Nail and SubPop, the latter a connection that came through his friend Jeremy Enigk of Sunny Day Real Estate. Apart from some of his early punk-leaning projects, Jurado has not been one to proclaim faith through his music, opting instead to tell stories both real and fictional.… Continued →

Husband and wife duo Michael and Laura Misiuk comprised alternative folk/rock act Acoustic Shack. Their stellar debut for Blonde Vinyl (1991, self-titled) was replete with poignant lyrics, Michael’s competent guitar playing, and the pair’s vocal harmonies led by Laura’s distinctly 90s alterna-pop croon. While it was slightly outside of my tastes at the time (which mostly leaned in a punk/metal/grunge direction), I couldn’t help but be captivated by the band’s combination of acoustic-led music and heartfelt reflections on topics as far-ranging as trying to understand a friend’s trauma from childhood abuse (“Deliver Me”), the comforts of home and belonging (“Red Door”), and the assurances of love (“It’s Good to Know”).… Continued →

Pioneers of the early Christian metal scene, Daniel Band formed in 1979 in Toronto, Canada. Along with Resurrection Band, they were one of the first band to fuse true hard rock with faith-filled fervor and lyrics. The band’s sound often rode the line between hard rock and traditional heavy metal, much like secular artists Kiss, Van Halen, and AC/DC. They released 5 albums between 1982 and 1988, with a live album in 2001 and a handful of re-issues. Though they haven’t released any new material since the 80s, the band have played a scattering of live shows, including appearances at Ohio’s Immortal Fest as recent as 2024, and they are scheduled again to play Part 2 of the festival this August!… Continued →

Stavesacre emerged in the mid-90s as sort of Christian punk/alternative/metal supergroup. Featuring ex-members of The Crucified, Focused, Chatterbox, The Blamed, scaterd-few, and Saviour Machine, the band had a lot of hype to live up to before their debut album was even heard. And while the members’ previous project mostly dabbled in hardcore, Stavesacre forged new sounds more akin to post-hardcore or alternative metal. The late 90s landscape was ripe for such a shift, with nu metal and other forms of non-traditional metal emerging. The band’s debut album, Friction, was metal with eager praise from both fans and critics, covering ground that was often neglected in Christian circles.… Continued →

After going out of print with its 150th issue in early 2012, Heaven’s Metal (HM) Magazine has returned with a 40th Anniversary special edition. Editor Doug Van Pelt was discussing print options with his friend Anthony Gober of Anchor Merchandising, who wanted to print a program for the upcoming two-weekend Immortal Festival events this summer (July 25-27 & August 29-31). One thing led to another, and Van Pelt volunteered to take on the whole project when he proposed, “Why don’t we make the festival program a legitimate 40th anniversary issue of Heaven’s Metal Magazine?”… Continued →

Hardcore band Clear Convictions originally formed in their home territory of Puerto Rico, but have since settled in Florida. I got to see the band live (for the first time) at Audiofeed last weekend and they absolutely killed it! In fact, they rocked hard enough to get this 51-year-old gray-haired guy out of mosh retirement. In fact, I surprised myself at how hard I went. But when the grooves are this deep and the riffs this thick, it’s hard to resist. The band formed sometime in the 2000s, but I couldn’t find a specific year.… Continued →

Okay, forgive me, but we’re doing two obscure instrumental songs in a row for Friday’s Song of the Day feature. Last week it was Dutch experimental noise artist Dolenaer. This week we have German psych rock band The CT Four Plus. I know very little about the band, other than the fact they were German and active in the 1970s. The band released four different singles (for a total of seven songs), all on the MFB Produktion label, a Christian label based in Germany that was active from the 60s through at least the 1980s.… Continued →

Okay, we’re about to go crazy-obscure for this Song of the Day. First off, is this even a song? I recently discovered Dolenaer while listening to Hymns of the Blackest Light Volume 2, a compilation of black metal and experimental noise put out by Fallen Oak Recording. You might recognize that name as being closely affiliated with atmospheric black metallers Vials of Wrath. Dolenaer ride that incredibly fuzzy line between ambient, experimental noise, and black metal, with a sound that hints of all three, but leads them into something entirely new.… Continued →

Everyone’s favorite nautically-themed hard rock band, Rusty Shipp, are set to release their latest marine-inspired offering, Capsized Empire to digital outlets this Friday (06/27). The album addresses the Problem of Evil from a philosophical standpoint–you know, standard, lightweight indie rock material (/sarcasm). In true Rusty Shipp form, the album follows a storyline, all of which will be included in the liner notes. Order from the band’s website here: rustyshipp.com… Continued →

Many of you will already be aware of the deep credentials held by Teeth for Eyes: members have played in Cicero, Empty Tomb, Godspeed, Crux, Government Hate Mail and many more. Naming these connections is both helpful and problematic. Sure, it tells us that the band members are seasoned veterans of the punk/indie scene, but how much does it tell us about the current music? While musically the band are still cranking out fast-paced punk rock with touches of both hardcore on the one hand and/or alternative/grunge on the other, they are somewhat of an anomaly in that they have a singer.… Continued →

Before he became a household name in prog rock, Neal Morse had already played in a handful of bands throughout the 80s and 90s. He’d recorded at least half a dozen albums with the notable Spock’s Beard, and also formed a prog-rock supergroup called Transatlantic with members of Flower Kings, Marillion, and Dream Theater. In fact, Morse’s partnership with famed drummer Mike Portnoy would carry over into several other projects, most notably (for our purposes here) the Neal Morse Band. In 2002, Morse became a born-again Christian, and began writing music with distinctly Christian lyrics and purposes.… Continued →

There was a lot of anticipation about this band before they ever released one song. Founder/vocalist Brett Detar had been in Zao, playing on one of their most popular albums, Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest, as well as the unique and creative–and tragically underrated/unheard–emo-core band Pensive before that. With The Juliana Theory, Detar, along with bandmates Neil Hebrank (drums), Chad Alan (bass), Joshua Fiedler (guitars), and Joshua Kisker (guitars) took emo in a more accessible direction. The band released four full-length albums between 1999 and 2006, along with a few live recordings, EPs, and the seminal split release with Dawson High.… Continued →

Brazilian black/death metal band Zurisadai came from the coastal city of São Luís in the northern State of Maranhão. The band formed in 2001 and released their debut album Symphony of the Souls the following year via Extreme Records, one of the more prolific Christian metal labels for Latin America. After a lengthy silence they released the follow-up The Coming of the Annihilation in 2014, also initially on Extreme Records. However, the album was impactful enough that it was re-issued no less than four times (!)… Continued →

Rivulets and Violets was a short-lived project spearheaded by Masaki Liu. Liu is a producer and engineer whose name appears in literally dozens (actually over a hundred!) of albums from Christian alternative and metal bands, especially in the 90s. He also owns his own studio, and has been a member of post-punks The Lonely Now and roots rockers Dimestore Prophets. But R&V was a unique project. Their first album was released in 1993, and featured mostly instrumental songs. While there were no lyrics, there were occasional vocal parts, mostly in the form of la’s and other non-verbal vocal sounds.… Continued →

Zion was a melodic/glam heavy metal band from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. After releasing a pair of self-released cassette demos in 1982 (Roll the Rock/Less of Me) and 1984 (Rock for Eternity), they signed with Image Records out of New York. The band’s full-length debut Thunder from the Mountain seemed to be a huge success for the label, getting rave reviews from critics and fans alike. “It It a Crime?” spent several weeks on Christian rock radio charts. For my money, Thunder is a top-5 album in the glam metal genre, a list that also includes Angelica’s self-titled debut, Holy Soldier’s self-titled debut, Guardian’s Fire and Love, and just about any album from Stryper’s early years.… Continued →

Oh my! After a 20-year hiatus, post-punk/hardcore darlings Crash Rickshaw are back! The band, comprised of members of Project 86, Innermeans, Rainy Days, Starflyer 59, and more, will release a brand-new EP, entitled Big Sir. The new project will release via Velvet Blue Music on August 1st, and will be the label’s 250th release! In addition to digital downloads, physical media will include blue & yellow haze vinyl, and compact disc. Pre-orders are now live at Velvet Blue Music… Continued →

True Liberty is a true-school punk rock band from Richmond, VA. The band was active for roughly 10 years, from the mid-2000s through the mid-2010s. In that period, they released an impressive collection of four full-length albums, all in the old school punk rock style. “Lost” is the opening track from their sophomore album Brotherhood, released in 2008 via Raging Storm Records. The band also released albums through Wounded Records and Thumper Punk Records. They also contributed tracks to several different Christian punk compilations via labels like Indie Vision Music, Rottweiler Records, Caustic Fallout, SkyBurnsBlack Records, in addition to the aforementioned Thumper Punk.… Continued →

Denison Witmer is a guitarist and vocalist. A classic singer-songwriter in the indie folk style. Witmer grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania attending Lancaster Mennonite School, representing the faith tradition in which he was raised. At some point during his youth, Witmer began taking guitar lessons from Don Peris (The Innocence Mission), and recorded his first album while he was in high school. The project was not marketed to the public, so his true debut came a few years later in 1998, in the form of Safe Away.… Continued →

The Julies was a barely-known indie pop band from Pennsylvania who released one highly-regarded EP for Flying Tart Records in 1996 and then disappeared for roughly 27 years. I caught up with the band recently to discuss their origins, their revival, and their connection to the Christian indie scene. IVM: I’ve been a huge fan since Lovelife. It’s one of my favorite EPs. You guys had some clear influences, but at the same time didn’t sound like anyone in particular. You must have been pretty young when you recorded that.… Continued →

I recently had the chance to video chat with Rob Withem, of indie pop outfit Fine China. The band has been active since the late 90s, and recently released the beautiful, sophisticated, elaborate I Felt Called (available on Double LP and CD, as well as digital formats via www.velvetbluemusic.com. IVM: Let’s start on a light note. Cloud has informed me that you’re an aficionado of dad jokes . . . RW: You know, that’s funny. I think he’s making that up to be funny, because I don’t think I’ve ever told a dad joke in my life.… Continued →

The music community lost a great one this week. Sadly for us, Mike Peters of The Alarm has passed from this life and into the next. The Welsh singer/guitarist was 66. Peters had first been diagnosed with cancer in 1995, and fought throughout the better part of 10 years before being diagnosed with yet another form of cancer in 2005. All throughout this time, Peters continued to perform, sometimes with The Alarm, sometimes solo, and at other times collaborating with others. He briefly fronted a version of Big Country, and also collaborated with Billy Duffy of The Cult in a project called Colorsound.… Continued →