News

Chase Tremaine’s Unfall made mild waves in the independent community in 2020, garnering his upwards of 4,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. That might seem like an insignificant statistic, but I’d willingly admit I listen to bands who’ve been at it for years with less visibility. Something definitely clicked with listeners here. Now, for some reason or another, I didn’t actually listen to Unfall from front to back. Maybe it was lack of time. Maybe it was the pressures of the past year. The downside: I can’t comment on how Tremaine has progressed since his last release.… Continued →

Rock & Metal

• Amongst Wolves – Voices
• Ben S Dixon – Born Unto Us
• Chase Tremaine – Developments
• Demon Hunter – Demon Hunter – I Will Fail You / Dead Flowers (Resurrected)
• Fire from Heaven – The Evil Wolf Chronicles
• Five Iron Frenzy – Until This Shakes Apart
• Heliocentric – Ishmael
• Seventh Day Slumber – Unseen: The Lion And The Lamb (Deluxe Edition)
• Valleyheart – T.I.K.

Pop & CCM

• Adam Lamb – It Had to Happen
• Alive City – Lay ‘Em Down (Acoustic Version)
• Armor Amor – Hold My Heart
• Apollo LTD – Acoustic Sessions (EP)
• Audrey Assad – Eden (Live)
• CAIN – Rise Up (Lazarus)
• Crowder – Good God Almighty
• Freedom Heart – Break Through
• Futures – Just So Good
• Haiva Ru – Oh, But Lover
• Joel Vaughn – Details
• Lazuli – HELMET OF HOPE
• Matthew Parker – Anyone
• Sarah Nathalié – 838
• Terrian – Genesis of Terrian (EP)
• Vaughn Owens – In The Middle

Electronic

• Freeg, Simon Miles, Exxoulls – All the Time
• Jaisua – Hero (EP)
• Ruth Lee Resuello, Bro Justin – Only Reason I’m Alive
• Swedish Revolution, LoudWorship – Ludicrous Mode

Folk & Singer/Songwriter

• Benjamin Krogh – Ghost That Haunts
• Charlie Peacock – Skin and Wind
• The Dailys – The Dailys (EP)
• Josh Garrels – His Wings
• Teressa Mahoney – Good Good

Hip Hop & R&B

• Angie Rose– Unstoppable
• Ayomilly – Unstoppable
• Benxiah – Myself Different
• Caleb Gordon – Furnace
• Chris Elijah – Steppin’
• Crowns Down – Who Am I?

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California’s The Beautiful Mistake is one of my faves from The Militia Group label which sports greats such as The Rocket Summer (whom I’ve seen live!), Copeland, Brandtson (whom I’ve also seen live!) & Acceptance, just to name a few. Their most recent 2020 release, EP You’re Not Broken, I Am, continued the post hardcore/emo trend they became known for. They have played a few Christian fests including TomFest back in 2002. The following is my fave from them and I dare say dabbled in the math rock genre.… Continued →

Remember when hardcore was still exciting? Fast loud rules! While hardcore can still be interesting, I find the monotony of some in the genre to be irritating. Here’s the formula: melodic leads, heavy use of breakdowns, some clean singing somewhere, and just enough tempo changes to give the appearance of being innovative. Okay, I’ll stop. I sound as old and jaded as I actually am. I still love the heavy music scene, and hardcore in particular. I just hate the fact that it’s getting harder and harder to tell the bands apart from one another (especially metalcore and deathcore).… Continued →

Ever heard of Deitiphobia? Massivivid is what became of Wally Shaw’s (founder of Deitiphobia) musical endeavours. Likened to Nine Inch Nails, the music is more guitar driven than his previous. I remember hearing Wally’s music back in the mid 90s & loved the song Red Society when industrial was at its peak in the mainstream. My email address back then was even industrial_remixx! Well time has progressed & Massivivid even won a Dove award in the Christian market with 1998s Hard music Album of the Year.… Continued →

Kendra Blethen is one of a host of singer-songwriters I found this past year, and it seems like North Carolina is churning out artist after artist. Blethen brandishes a unique blend of southern grit and spiritual ruminations across Pilgrimage, her debut EP. The core concept came to her during a drive to what I can only assume might be Audiofeed – a reminder that the voyage matters as much as the destination. Or, as Miley Cyrus put it, “It’s the climb”. Admittedly, there’s a certain simplicity here, both in song structure and lyrics.… Continued →

One of my favorite 00’s pop-punk/melodic punk acts – Too Bad Eugene, returns this year with new music. While we await such a magnificent return by Adam Nigh and company, the band has just put up the now classic year 2000 full length, “At Any Rate”, for download and streaming on all digital networks. For the first time in over 20 years you’ll finally be able to listen to this album I’ve been raving about ever since it’s release on CD 20 years ago.… Continued →

Swedish Death Metal band, Pantokrator, are back with a brand new song titled “We The People” off the album “Marching Out of Babylon” due out January 29th via Nordic Mission. Pre-Order the album in several different formats including CD, Vinyl, and Tape, right here. This is quality stuff my friends and showcases a band that straddles the line between the brutally heavy and melodic. It’s like a battle between darkness and light but in music format. Check them out.… Continued →

So this review is partially due to a music review veteran Kevin Crothers’ latest top 10 video for Mortification on his YouTube channel in lieu of his White Throne Metal Radio show.  I myself, have been a die-hard Morty fan since probably circa 1996 when a friend of mine in high school gave me ripped copies of Circle of Dust S/T, Mortification-Best of 5 Years & Sixpence’s This Beautiful Mess. I know, a rather all over the place in genres! I really dug Morty’s sound. At the time, the heaviest stuff I had ever heard (& still pretty darn heavy) was from Living Sacrifice’s Darkened & Crimson Thorn’s Your Carcass.… Continued →

Listen: Amazon Music | Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube Lyrics:… Continued →

Danen Kane is one of a handful of local Wisconsin artists I care about, and in terms of local faith-based artists, he’s top-tier. He models humility and humor. He write complex songs that don’t mask his faith one bit. Today’s song is one of his best, quickly demolishing the singer-songwriter label and quickly moving into anthemic indie. It’s no mystery why he’s become a favorite act in the Fox Valley. … Continued →

Rock & Metal

• 4th Point – Right Wrong
• Chase Tremaine – Q2FN
• Fallstar – The Prism Glass
• Light45 – The Medic
• Love and Death – White Flag
• Pantokrator – We the People
• Reclaimers – Say What You Will

Pop & CCM

• Amanda Danziger – Intercede
• Andrew Ripp – Jericho (Acoustic)
• Chris Renzema – Let The Ground Rest B-Sides (EP)
• The Colour Negative – Good Year
• Cristabelle Braden – Growing (Pop Version)
• Danny Gokey – New Day (Radio Version)
• Eleni Baker – More Than a Million (EP)
• Ginny Owens – Shine Again (Stripped Mix)
• Jared Marc – What I’m Good At
• Joel Vaughn – Louder Than The Lies
• Josh Sellers – The Way It Seems
• Petey Martin, Lauren Daigle – Come Back Home
• Philip Shibata – Sad World
• Nathan Kitner, Lily Grant – I’d Follow You Anywhere
• Scott Riggan – Don’t You Lose Heart (Beautiful and Terrible)
• Trampolines – No One Loves Like You
• Twilight Meadow – Dust
• We The Kingdom – Holy Water (Deluxe)

Electronic

• Bryson Price, Mikesh!ft

… Continued →

From the opening notes of “Just Breathe” all the way to its creaky end, this track seems to live up to the “ghostly” vibe of this Washington-based act. Rest assured, this band is neither post-rock nor needlessly-morose. Ghost Stations is instead more coffee shop than haunted house. It shimmers with a certain tender warmth, though vulnerability is around every corner. The ghosts here are not external tormentors; they’re vestigial memories. “(I Can’t) Save Your Soul” is the first point where we see the full band – complete with buttery bass, tight drumming, and some jazzy piano.… Continued →

I dig most “core” music genres, & there are tons of them (metalcore, screamo, nintendocore, etc…). One of my faves is electronicore which fuses unclean (growled or screamed vocals) with clean & double bass pedals & a lone keyboardist (which this song has the perfect mix of imho. Formed in Rock Hill, SC, at a pentecostal church, WOE i one of my friends son’s band. My friend Paul Gaskin is the youth & children’s pastor of the church which is also known for a Helloween event that showcases a “haunted house scenario”, but shows how life’s end can be very scary without our Saviour Jesus.… Continued →

Glam metal gets a bad rap. Especially in punk/indie/hardcore circles. Except for the occasional semi-ironic nod to the genre, it doesn’t get much love outside of 40- and 50-something dads who like to show off old photos of their teenage mullets. Whether the cheesyness or the sleaziness is to blame, folks seem to have a love-hate relationship with it. Occasionally, however, there are some real gems. Rage of Angels released one fantastic album in 1989 through Regency Records. Shortly thereafter, the Connecticut-based band split up, leaving 2 members to join the newly-formed mainstream pop metal outfit Steelheart, who had huge radio hits with “She’s Gone” and “I’ll Never Let You Go.”… Continued →

Angie Turner is the given name for soloist Miss Angie who has been releasing music since 1997. She was married to Oran from Johnny Q Public (whom I saw back in probably circa in their hometown of Springfield, MO). 2 LPs were released in the 90s that went to the Christian market. Consisting of what I would consider 60s esque/bubblegum/hard alternative rock music, the music was hip & akin to Veruca Salt or what I think Avril Lavigne would have made if in the Christian market.… Continued →

Listen: Amazon Music | Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube Music Lyrics:… Continued →

Indie-Emo-Punk band, The August Guns, return with their best song yet. This too has just been released in the new year. I think many of you are going to dig this. Check out the song below and follow the band here. … Continued →

At The Wayside return after a long 3 year wait with BRAND NEW MUSIC! That’s right, the band just dropped their new single titled “My Denial” which will be the first song released from their upcoming independent EP that is due out this winter. Check out the song below and make sure to follow the band on social media. … Continued →

Jaded Thorns were a grunge band that hailed from New York . Releasing 2 LPs & disbanding, this was a band that I wished for more of.  It is hard to find much on them as their record label did not last long. Both Epiphany & Things My Father Taught Me were on Word of Mouth (The Roosevelts, Sides of the North, Mending Point, Poor Man’s Riches). A few songs hit radio: Epiphany, Remnants, Lie Awake & Lost In The Moment & the one featured. The lyrics come straight from Psalm 130 verse 1: “If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?… Continued →

Rock & Metal

• Arson – In too deep
• At The Wayside – My Denial
• Atlas and the Attic – Gold
• The August Guns – Be Not Burned Up
• Convent Bonfires – Shaky Hands
• Remedy Drive – Dragons
• WeAreGeneration – Photographic Memory
• Zahna – Look What You Made Me Do

Pop & CCM

• Allan Scott – Hold It All
• Anna Waters – Walkin on the Water
• Apollo LTD, Social Club Misfits – Good Day (feat. Social Club Misfits)
• Bre Reed – From the Start
• Brian Weaver – Bulletproof
• Charlie Peacock – When You Move Me
• The Colour Negative – Good Year
• Courtnie Ramirez – The Blackbird Sessions (EP)
• for KING & COUNTRY, Hannah Ellis, Jackson Michelson – TOGETHER (The Country Collaboration)
• DC Talk – Jesus Freak (Owl City Remix)
• Grace Graber – In My Head (EP)
• JJ Heller – I Believe in You
• Jon Webster – Lovesick
• Mandisa – Breakthrough
• Nfgn – Year 2020
• Xander Sallows, Sam Bowman – Daydream
• Tauren Wells – All God’s Children

Folk & Singer/Songwriter

• The Altar Billies – The Ballad of Ol’ Luce
• The Altar Billies – Great Big Rollin’ Big Boy
• The Altar Billies – Virginia Truckee Line
• The Bowery – Mountains & Valleys
• Brooks Ritter – Ghosts Come to Life (EP)
• Charlie Peacock – Holding On and Letting Go
• More Than Rubies – Walking Through Fire
• Nathan Kitner, Lily Grant – Nothing Sweeter, Nothing Stronger
• Stephanie Quick – Redwood
• Zan Fiskum – You Are The Light

Hip Hop & R&B

• AyeItsAron – Strt Frsh
• Bold Noize – Goslow
• B-Shock, Roy Nova – Confetti (EP)
• Daniel Wayne – As I Am
• Joey Vantes – Legend (EP)
• Josiah Lowe, Xay Hill – DRIP.

… Continued →

Rock & Metal

• A Secret Ending – Deliverance (EP)
• Evans and Stokes – Diary of the Damned
• Killdevil Theory – Brotherhood

Pop & CCM

• Stephen Miller – Forever by My Side

Electronic

• Bryson Price, Mikesh!ft – Victory

Folk & Singer/Songwriter

• Charlie Peacock – Faith, Hope & Love
• Charlie Peacock – Freedom Come Tonight
• hadassa morais – homesick for somewhere i’ve never been

Hip Hop & R&B

• CS LIT – Deleted 4
• Davis Absolute, Oh-So – Still Snowing
• Living Scars – O Holy Night
• Mouthpi3ce – No Delay (EP)
• Mr Del – MD 2020: Soulside
• Paradox, ReFlex the Architect – Freedom (EP)
• Saint Jones – I’d Rather Be Hot (EP)
• Tylynn – Sown 
• Uknowfro – Street Preacher 3

Worship & Gospel

• Iwan & Rebekka Sahertian – Your Kingdom come
• Poor Bishop Hooper – Psalm 53
• Ramp Worship – I See an Open Door
• Relion – Gospel (Our God Be Praised)
• Theunis Pretorius – Only One Thing

Other

• Charlie Peacock – See for Miles
• Charlie Peacock – Surprised Me Too
• Charlie Peacock – Your Stardust Kiss

Christmas

• C3 NYC – A Christmas Story (Live) (EP)
• The Crossing Music – Light in the Night
• DaySpring Worship – Our Emmanuel
• Emmanuel Worship – Angels
• Former Ruins – Fruit of Winter (EP)
• Hope Music – O Holy Night
• I.AM

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Creating a list of my top 100 albums and EPs has been fun and all, but it’s really these last 25 that are my personal favorites of 2020. They’re the ones that I’ve listened to the most and the ones I think I will keep coming back to in 2021. So here it is, my top 25 albums and EPs of 2020:… Continued →

Going way back into the vaults of IVM history a few of you might recall a female led indie pop-rock band called One Star Story. They had news and reviews on this site as well as appeared on multiple compilations. I just got a blast from the past when Vanessa (Rose) emailed me about her new project after more than 6 years away from making music. She was vocalist for One Star Story and now goes by the name of “Vanessa From Maine” on digital networks/streaming sites.… Continued →

Starting this new year off right with some fun ska music from B.U.C.K. (building Up Christ’s Kingdom) aka Buck Enterprises. This Detroit, MI six piece band released a few albums before disbanding. I remember writing a college paper on ska & B.U.C.K would be classified as 3rd wave ska. Their 1998 self-titled release featured more horns than the second & featured a cartoon character which appeared to be skanking in a raincoat while holding up a checkered black & white ball which are the normal colors for ska music.… Continued →

Something I realized once I started breaking my top 100 albums and EPs of 2020 list down into four posts is that each post became a micro-list of its own. For example, I wasn’t really thinking too hard about what album I was going to rank 26th when there were 100 albums. But when I split the list up suddenly being ranked 26th seemed really important as it became the last album a reader will see in this post. The reverse proved be true as well, ranking an album 75th where it’s going to be first album a reader sees when they click my post became important too.… Continued →

Despite all the despair, hopelessness, fear, anxiety, death, destruction, and uncertainty that 2020 has thrown at us, we have all taken solace in our music and found hope through it. We are carried through the pain with messages of inspiration, songs of motivation, and songs that just plain electrified our souls. The following is a collection of albums, eps, and songs that were meaningful to me in 2020. Not all of the releases listed below are “Christian” but most of them rocked me to my core!… Continued →

Some would say that putting together a year-end list of your top 100 albums and EPs is insane. And I agree. It’s one of the most ambitious things I’ve attempted since I started writing for IVM. So how did I do it exactly? Well I started out by putting together a list of all the albums and EPs I listened to during 2020—a feat in its own right. When I was done I had a list of about 300 releases which I then set out to rate on a scale of 1 to 10.… Continued →

So, it’s New Year’s Day. 2020 is a recently faded memory, but with the obvious enduring repercussions. Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Or affirmations, or commitments, or whatever else people are calling them nowadays? My wife (who is an artist) loves the New Year holiday. She sees it as a blank slate. A new chance to start over. Erase all the marks from the chalkboard (remember those?) or the whiteboard, or your Zoom screen and go again, taking all you’ve learned to try and do it better next time.… Continued →

I was going to write a little intro to this list of mine, but in the end I figured I’d just let it speak for itself. Alot of great music dropped despite all the year brought us and these are my top 20. Let me know what you think!     20. Everything In Slow Motion – “Influence”. (Rock/Hard Rock) Released 10/16/20 on Facedown Records. Influence was the band’s first release since the 2016 ep, Laid Low. While it didn’t feel like a whole lot of new ground was covered, that is a good thing, especially considering their sound.… Continued →