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I wasn’t really sure how I was going to do my “best of” list this year. I was considering breaking it down into genres similar to what Casey did. Or splitting my albums and EPs into two lists. Or just doing my top 10 list like I normally do. In the end though I decided to take a page out of Josh Balogh’s playbook and go big. So here the first 25 of my top 100 album and EPs of 2020:… Continued →

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

Adam Nigh of the bands Too Bad Eugene and original Craig’s Brother line up, has covered the song “My Annie” acoustically. “My Annie” was a song off Craig’s Brother now classic full length album, “Homecoming”, which released in 1998 via Tooth & Nail Records. This was the song Adam sang on off that album. Check it out below.… Continued →

My last review of 2020 & yet another band from the archives! This band was extremely hard to track down. Heard this song Daybreak on an indie Christian website/station back while stationed in the military. My guess is that this song was released during the old mp3.com download days. It took me probably 15 years before I tracked down a hard copy. There is another band called Gone Hazel, but I do not believe it is the same band. Anyways, finally got a hold of this 2 song demo release on Ebay from a seller whom I am guessing used to be a DJ as was selling rare stuff such as promotional releases from artists. … Continued →

"O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation." -Psalm 95:1

Abel had a good run on both Come & Live and Facedown’s indie imprint before releasing Make It Right independently. It was a fitting final album, seeing the band in their rawest form. “Fifteen Years” is a highlight track, one of urgency, pain, and longing paired with fear and remorse as seen through the eyes of a beggar. In its simplest form, it’s a reality for the urban homeless; in its deepest sentiments, it’s a parable akin to the woman at the well. … Continued →

Undeniably, 2011 was a critical year for my musical taste. It’s the year I discovered Hands and A Hope for Home, bands still cemented as life-changing artists with some of my favorite albums of all time. Over the course of the next two years, due to bands like Gracer and Moving Mountains, my taste trended further from metal into atmospheric, emo-adjacent rock I’ve emphatically christened crescendocore. I began collecting these types of acts into a rather lengthy playlist called “Feels fo’ Realz” (which still exists). I was hyped on that type of sound.… Continued →

Merry Christmas friends and readers. We made it! Can you believe that after all the chaos, death and destruction, and utter disappointment that 2020 is now classified as, that somehow we made it to a beautiful day like Christmas? We are reminded of our Savior’s Birth and the promise of redemption that would come through his death and resurrection. 2020 may suck royally but at least we all have each other, our families, our love, and God up above. Despite what has happened this year, it has been a teachable moment in time and we are reminded of not only our importance as believers living here on this Earth, but the whole reason for the season (sorry for the cliche reference, it is important).… Continued →

Former Ruins has released a surprise Christmas EP (technically some brief notice was given). Noah has covered a lot of Christmas releases already, so you might feel a bit overwhelmed. Further, the timing may seem inopportune. After all, today is Christmas, isn’t it? You’ve got better things to do than listen to music, and then you’ll shelve this for next year. But these are not your typical Christmas songs – they speak to the season of Christmas on the church calendar. They’re for today and beyond.… Continued →

Today’s perfect “Christmas” song is none other than MxPx “Christmas Day” from that cherished 1999 compilation album, “Happy Christmas Vol. 2”. This compilation was released on BEC Recordings / T&N which brought some classics from artists like MxPx, Sixpence None The Richer, All Star United, Plankeye, Hangnail, Flight 180, Starflyer 59, Fanmail, Element 101, Deluxetone Rockets, and so many more. First 3 Volumes are pure classics! MxPx brought it at a time where the band was exploding with “Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo”.… Continued →

First things first–merry Christmas everyone! It’s been a challenging year, and many of us are ready to see the back of it. I always post my Song of the Day picks on Friday, so I was pleased to the lucky draw for Christmas Day! Of course, it had to be a Christmas song, and there are lots of good ones to choose from, even from our niche scene. For those unfamiliar with Adam Again, they have deep roots in the Christian music scene. They started out in the California scene of the 1980s through Broken Records and later Brainstorm Artists.… Continued →

Another Song of The Day from the great Happy Christmas series of the late 90’s. The first 3 Volumes still remain some of my favorite “Christmas” collections of songs, by far. My song of the day, which is the 2nd today, Christmas Eve. Fanmail came out swinging with a punk rock classic done with their (now) classic sound. Scott Silletta (Ex-Plankeye) was always in his best element by showing a bit of edge behind the guitar and mic. This song is certainly no exception to that rule.… Continued →

When Happy Christmas Vol. 1 hit my ears, I was pleasantly and delightfully impressed. It had some of my favorite bands at the time doing their best versions of Christmas classics. One of those songs was “You Gotta Get Up” by Five Iron Frenzy which was originally composed by Rich Mullins (RIP). The song is a playful tune with a bouncy rhythm and plenty of holiday cheer, perfect for the Christmas season. Well placed horn section and Reese’s unforgettable voice, I mean that in the most sincere way.… Continued →

Sorry I’m a bit late on this. Nate Parrish just released his brand new music video through Indie Vision Music and you can watch the premiere below. Thanks to Nate and please check out his fabulous 2020 full length, “I’m A Wreck”, available now!… Continued →

Florida-based Wind Words has returned with his newest project, Minor Prophets, a collection of spoken word meditations. These Scripture-driven pieces recount the narratives of both popular and overlooked biblical accounts. This is a bit of a diversion from his debut, Digging Up Earth, but it carries the same level of passion. Minor Prophets by Wind Words… Continued →

Here’s another obscure band from the archives. First heard them on an indie Christian rock station/website & they seemed to have an Americana/grunge flair. They appear to have a full length called Flicker that was released in 1999, but I have not heard that one (but, totally just ordered)! I picked up 2 of their EPs (Self-titled & The Lazy I Sessions” for a high price back several years ago. Anyways, this song is catchy & I dig it & hope you do also!… Continued →

How many of y’all like covers? Well, ABR has done several & have made them into their own metalcore sound. Covering songs from Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus, Saves the Day & The Legend of Zelda, Nofx, tons of Christmas ones & now System of a Down, they are always welcome to my ears. Apparently, they played this one during soundcheck before their shows tons before finally deciding to do a cover. It is also one that they showcase more of their clean vocals than before. The single was released December 15th on Fearless Records which is the label that has brought us music from Starset, The Color Morale, Blessthefall, Wage War, Classic Case, The Almost & my fave band of all time, Underoath.… Continued →

Check back here and on our YouTube Channel December 24th 2020 at 8am PST for the full premiere of Nate Parrish’s new music video for the song “Bullets & Blades”. Video the video premiere page by clicking here (or below). Make sure to visit his website to purchase his 2020 debut full length on CD and grab some other merch as well. Nate will release a new EP in 2021!… Continued →

There’s something about that mid-00s Christian emo sound. Spotify calls it “dreamo” and it encapsulates bands like The Myriad, Poor Old Lu, Fair, Copeland, and a fair number of Tooth & Nail artists. Of course, the appeal of this sound is not purely nostalgic; Subways on the Sun proved that for us last year. Chill, melodic, emo-adjacent rock is refreshingly-dynamic. Pour on a healthy dose of ethereal falsetto for full effect. It’s cinematic in the truest sense. It borrowed some of the highlights of bands like The Goo Goo Dolls and Coldplay and added in a higher degree of artisan craftsmanship.… Continued →

Initially, this was one of my least-favorite tracks on the albums – but it’s a beautiful, Gospel-tinged track full of Scripture under a veneer of soulful piano.  … Continued →

Rock & Metal

• Bride – Here Is Your God
• Chase Tremaine – Fear Not Want
• Fallstar – Waiting
• Messenger – In to Win
• Northern Flame – Twisted Reality
• Steve Taylor & the Danielson Foil – Ecstatic Delight
• Then It Ends – Kingdom (Alternative Version)
• Words – Trees (Live) (EP)

Pop & CCM

• Chris August – Ghost
• Conrad – Hidden Places
• Crossroads Music – Come In From The Cold
• Darla Baltazar – Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
• Eniola Abioye – MARBLED MOSAIC.
• John Ward – Graves and Graces
• Jordan Feliz – Say It
• Josh Sellers – Far Away
• Lovelite – Mmxx (EP)
• Mike Donehey – Better
• Stephen Stanley – No Hopeless Soul
• walk in love.

… Continued →

Here’s another obscure band for ya! Broken released one LP on Mercy Street Records which had a small yet diverse array of artists: Real (Nu metal), Popcorn (rap), one of Seventh Day Slumber’s early releases & Salt (Southern rock). Broken has a hard hitting heavy rapcore/nu-metal sound. They released 3 songs to indie Christian rock/loud radio: Beautiful, Stand & Cage. My fave was the 1st track which had lyrics like “beautiful the blood shed for me”. It’s no disguise that this is a full on “Christian” band.… Continued →

Indie rock/Post hardcore act Yours For Mine release new song! FFO: Meadows, Eaves, and Idle Threat.

The year was 1990. I’d heard lots of buzz about this new “goth rock” band Dead Artist Syndrome. Even Roger Martinez from Vengeance Rising had been sporting their t-shirt at gigs. For those who don’t know, DAS was the first goth band to release an album on a Christian label. While being the first is always a good thing, it wasn’t the fact that they were an early representative of the subgenre that made them interesting. It was that they were so darn good at it.… Continued →

Rhonda Gunn is a singer/songwriter that has been around since 1995. I admit I did not hear her music til more recently (around 2 years ago) when a station/website called Crossroads started playing her music. Since then I have heard music from 2 other albums Forgiveness & I Wonder. My musical tastes are very eclectic & so I started searching & found she is even on the Frontline Records site & is an outstanding songwriter who has has penned songs for Dallas Holm & Heirloom. Her music sounds adult contemporary with some rock underlinings with her soaring vocals sounding (at least to me) like a cross between Carrie Underwood & dare I say it, Sandi Patty.… Continued →

Here are my favorite releases of the year by category.

If you’ve seen my Christmas posts on IVM the past few years then you probably think I’m big fan of Christmas music. And might just be right. It seems like the genre has been growing on me more each year. But it hasn’t always been that way for me. There was defiantly a time during my teens and college years where I found Christmas music annoying at best. So what changed? That’s a question I found myself asking this week and I came up with a few thoughts.… Continued →

Krig is a Brazilian band with obvious death metal tendencies. They have been around since 2007 & have released a few albums including now 2 cover LPs . The production is stellar for death metal projects imho. I happened to stumble upon this today & am digging their take on classics from Bloodgood, Megadeth, Messiah Prophet, Trouble & one of my fave bands of all time (lyrically & musically), Tourniquet. The song Ark of Suffering actually was banned by MTV back in the day. The song features Karl Walfridsson who is Pantrokrator’s vocalist.… Continued →

I try & find obscure bands for these reviews so others can enjoy a lost song/band like I do. Animal Couch is one of those. I first heard their music through my endless digging for Christian music through a long ago website/station called Freerock1). Their goth look seems to be both like Wedding Party or Virgin Black, but sound more akin to modern rock. They had released 3 cds which were rare, but Spotify currently carries all: Spare Room Demo, Chocolate Covered Pears & Words To Die By.  … Continued →

How many of y’all remember a hackey sack (the little ball you kicked with your foot & held it on the side of your shoe & sent it up on your head or flipped it to another player in style). Man, in my high school days that was the in-thing! Well, Australia’s Beanbag is named for that little entertainment ball. Saw this 4 piece at Carowinds in South Carolina back in the day. Pretty sure Hangnail, Denison Marrs & Thousand Foot Krutch were there that day also.… Continued →