News

December 25, 2020

Song of the Day: Adam Again - Angels We Have Heard on High

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 →

December 24, 2020

Song of the Day: Fanmail - I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

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 →

Song of the Day: Five Iron Frenzy - You Gotta Get Up

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 →

Song of the Day: Tiller Paul - Leave Me Here

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 →

December 22, 2020

Song of the Day: August Burns Red - Chop Suey!

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 →

December 21, 2020

REVIEW : Verlaine - Don't Wake Them From Their Sleep

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 →

December 19, 2020

ivm

New Releases: December 18, 2020

Rock & Metal Pop & CCM Continued →

Song of the Day: Broken - Beautiful

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 →

December 18, 2020

Song of the Day: Dead Artist Syndrome - Dance With Me

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 →

December 17, 2020

Song of the Day: Rhonda Gunn - Binding Chains

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 →

December 16, 2020

Opinion: 3 Reasons I Like Christmas Music Again

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 →

December 15, 2020

Krig - Tribute II

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 →

Song of the Day: Animal Couch-Shoes

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 →

December 14, 2020

Song of the Day: Beanbag-Whiplash

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 →

December 13, 2020

ivm

New Releases: December 11, 2020

Rock & Metal Pop & CCM Electronic Folk & Singer/Songwriter Hip Hop & R&B Worship & Gospel Continued →

December 12, 2020

My Top 10 Christmas Albums of 2020

I should probably be working my Best of 2020 list right now, but as I set out to make my annual Christmas playlist I kept stumbling across great new albums and EPs. So while my top albums of 2020 list sits on the backburner for a few more weeks, enjoy this list of my top 10 new Christmas albums and EPs that were released this year. Oh, and stick around for that aforementioned playlist at the bottom of the page.… Continued →

December 11, 2020

Commenting on IVM Works Again

We (actually Fusse) have fixed the commenting feature on Indie Vision Music website and it works once again. It has been down for over a week with tons of comments going nowhere. Please return today and leave your comments below the posts that interest you. More content coming in the days ahead including a special look back at “The Top 25 Christian Rock Albums of 1995” that I’ve been slowing working on for a few months now. Thanks everyone!… Continued →

Song of the Day: Living Sacrifice - Not Beneath

There are so many different types of Living Sacrifice fans. People who started listening from the beginning, and those who joined somewhere along the way. Fans who praise their experimental phase, those who prefer the -core era, and those who swear by the traditional metal era. Heck, I even know one guy who claims they only released one album (he’s a thrash fan), and all the others were recorded by imposters! The band has certainly seen a number of different phases, most easily broken down into two main categories (metal and -core) with a few other splinters.… Continued →

December 10, 2020

Song of the Day - Raspberry Jam: Everything We Need

Raspberry Jam is one of the earliest Christian alternative rock bands when alternative was such a genre. Heard their music through an indie rock station out of Springfield, MO while I was visiting fiends back in the early-mid 90s. This same station is where I discovered other greats such as Cloud2Ground, The Violet Burning & The Prayer Chain (the later 2 who evolved from the same southern California scene as Raspberry).  The band released and EP & 3 LPs before disbanding. Released on Metro One Records in 1993 (the same label who brought us Spoken & Precious Death), the 3rd release Chi-Ro was an alternative rock/funk hybrid with 2 vocalists: Phillip Kim & Angel Short.… Continued →

December 9, 2020

Song of the Day: Scales of Motion - Hard Rains

Scales of Motion’s latest release was eerily-prophetic. It’s a song strewn with gnomic phrases like “This whole year has been one long November”. Stylistically, it feels like a classic emo song, reminiscent of Mineral or early Cool Hand Luke. Check it out below. Hard Rains by Scales of Motion Lyrics: Take me down to the edge of the river To watch the banks be reshaped as it flows. When I was young, all of life was a blanket. Now I sleep shivering in the cold. There will come hard rains, And they may wash away The things you thought you’d always know.… Continued →

December 8, 2020

Album Showcase: Reflescent Tide -Self Titled

Reflescent Tide is one of the first Christian rock bands I heard of way back in the mid 90s. There was a college show out of the University of Illinois that had a DJ that would play all kinds of music I had never heard of. The 3 piece band out of Canada had a 2 cd career. Their follow up actually had a music video which is grainy on YouTube They do not look like rock stars akin to most music released at the time.… Continued →

December 7, 2020

BLOOD, SWEAT, and SIN: The History of Christian Rock (A New Docuseries by Michael Bridges)

Michael Bridges, a long time member of our Christian Music and Rock Scene has embarked on a journey to release a special docuseries all about his involvement in the scene, where its gone, and and what is has meant to him. Sure to be shocking, compelling, and altogether interesting. Check out the trailer below and view the special gofundme to help get this project off the ground, right here. This really reminds me of an Anthony Bourdain (RIP) style series in the most honest way and it definitely has my interest.… Continued →