Tag: song of the day

Take me past familiar waters to a place so deep / it reserves itself for the eyes of those who dream. “Dream” by GS Megaphone communicates the essence of God-as-artist, the One in whom “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). Taken from their album Beautiful World (2003), it is a reminder that God is the source of all creativity. So often our imaginations are caught in a torrent of meaningless distractions, and still, the opportunity for metanoia (Greek term for changing one’s mind) awaits us in and through Christ’s grace.… Continued →

The year was 1997. The heyday of Christian alternative rock was starting to wane, as mainstream sounds were drifting into new territory. Dance pop (in the form of boy bands and girl bands) was starting to make another attempt at dominating the airwaves. Electronica and house were exploding in creativity and splintering into new subgenres every day. Outside of punk and hardcore, the most exciting thing happening in rock was a revival of traditional British sounds in a new format cleverly dubbed “Britpop.” While not a new genre per se, its popularity had boomed with no small thanks to bands like Oasis, Blur, James and literally dozens of others across the pond.… Continued →

A couple weeks back, Brandon published an article about some of the issues American society faces today: partisanship, gun violence, and mental illness. One of the quotations that resonated with me was that “Libertarians are struggling to have their voice heard.” It got me thinking about one of my favourite hip-hop albums, Full Disclosure (2012) by JustMe, whose sharp lyrics express a distrust towards the U.S. government. One of the standout tracks is “Yougenics” which takes a well-informed look at Social Darwinism and its relation to abortion.… Continued →

The North Pole Project (2008) wasn’t supposed to be a Number One Gun album. Rather, this was once the name of vocalist/guitarist Jeff Schneeweis’ solo project in the aftermath of Number One Gun’s breakup. In any case, The North Pole Project is a beautiful indie rock anthem. Not only did Schneeweis play every instrument on the album, but he also produced and mixed it. In these songs, he goes beyond some of the margins of the band’s past work, and this is best exemplified by closing song “This Holiday.”… Continued →

Black metal stalwarts Ascending King are back! They’ve just dropped a new single “Lignum Vitae,” which is a collaborative effort with Sebat Frost from Frost Like Ashes. Whether it’s due to that influence or not is hard to say, but the doomy elements first heard on the Ascending King EP released last year are gone this time in favor of a faster-paced black metal sound. The single can be downloaded for free here: Ascending King – Lignum Vitae… Continued →

Today’s song of the day comes in the form of some punk-ska from our friends in Michigan based band – The Insyderz. I was a fan of this band dating back to 1997 when I heard their debut full length, “Motor City Ska”. The band released 3 full lengths, 2 worship/praise albums, and this final (?) full length in 2012. The song that meant the most to me and had me spinning it again was “Sinner’s Songbook”. The track features Joe’s (Yerke) gritty yet melodic, vocal delivery alongside the vocals of Reese Roper (Five Iron Frenzy), and Matt Morginsky (OC Supertones).… Continued →

Sorry guys, I don’t have a song of the day today. After wading through over four dozen new singles and a handful of new albums this week I was only able to narrow it down to thirteen songs. So here are your songs of the day:

1. Pray for Sleep – Dear Death (feat. Hashu)
2. Random Hero – Tension
3. Bloodlines – Spiritual Warfare
4. Built by Titan – Ghost
5. Sink In – Drive 
6. CLOUDLAND – Over Again
7. Stillman – Shook
8. LNYX – Beauty in the Breakdown
9. Grant Owen – Everything Changes
10. Crystal Rome – Island
11. Jon Webster – Caught Up
12. Tenielle Neda – No Fear in Love
13. Eikon – Kingdom (feat.

… Continued →

Remember “Cooler Than Me” by Mike Posner? That song used to be really cool in 2010 and was popular enough to be played at shopping malls. But maybe, perhaps, you thought yourself cooler than Mike Posner, despite his single having a lot of pizzazz and swagger. Fair enough. Well, I hate to break it to you, but Starflyer 59 is actually cooler than both of you. “We’re the Ordinary,” taken from The Fashion Focus (1998), is cool enough to freeze a hipster shopping mall on a blazing summer’s day.… Continued →

I’m going to be honest, I don’t really know anything about Benjamin Hamilton, I just stumbled across “heartbroken.” while I was searching for new music on Spotify this weekend. I saw that The Good Christian Music Blog had playlisted some of his previous songs and figured it was worth checking out and threw his new single into my playlist. Well, it ended up being one of those songs where every time it would come up in shuffle I would have to stop what I’m doing and pull out my phone to see what I was listening to.… Continued →

I became a fan of The Devil Wears Prada in 2011. There were many reasons for this: peer pressure via a friend, the positive review in HM Magazine, and Dan Seagrave’s dark and mysterious artwork. Dead Throne made me realize what I’d been missing out on. It’s near impossible to choose a favourite song from a near perfect album, but in my iTunes library, “My Questions” has the most plays. To my knowledge, the band has never played this song live, but the mesmerizing guitar work and depressing bridge echo in my head often.… Continued →

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: this is one of the greatest songs our scene has ever produced! It gets straight to the heart of what it’s all about: “Hey I’m talkin’ to you/Yeah, I’m trying to get through/God cares about you more than think . . . You are loved! You are loved!” It was the first song I ever heard from the Altar Boys, in the late 80s. Ironically, it was on a metal compilation where I first heard them. Though the song is nowhere near metal, it has that late 80s post-punk/power pop sound from SoCal that has loads of energy.… Continued →

Back in 2017 Kingslynn made my 10 ten albums of the year with your debut full-length Into the White Light. Now the indie-pop trio is back with with a brand new single titled “Give and Take” which you can listen to below. Lyrics Facebook Instagram Website For more new music check out the Weekly New Release Sampler playlist on Spotify. … Continued →

Remember Syntax Records, the label that put out awesome underground hip-hop like RedCloud, the Night Owls compilations, and Sackcloth Fashion? Well, sometimes the label released music from other genres, too. This included rock bands like Green Olive Tree and Olivia the Band, and on other occasions, electronic music. Today I’d like to share a song from Formless (2007) by Shane Newville, titled “Roll Out.” It is seven minutes of D&B bliss and perfect for an epic high speed car chase, should you find yourself in such a predicament.… Continued →

We all find that special album, the initial attraction which binds the listener to a band from the get go. For me, that first album “Homecoming” by Craig’s Brother was just that, an alluring piece of work that had me fascinated from day one. Tooth & Nail released this album in 1998, nearly 21 years ago. It wasn’t exactly a “huge” hit but sure did knock us all in the chest with powerful guitar heavy punk rock and harmonies you can’t get out of your head.… Continued →

If you’ve been following hardcore at all in the last 5 years, you probably already know about this Chicago “positive hardcore” band. Reflecting a PMA approach to lyrics, which includes things like unity in diversity, straight edge, veganism, and faith, the band churn out revivalist true school hardcore punk classics with great fecundity. This short track’s opening riff reminds me of the glory days of Descendents, and yet vocalist Wiley Willis seems to be drawing inspiration from H.R. of Bad Brains. Check it out and let me know what you think.… Continued →

“Life on Earth” is one of my favorite singles of 2019. And as of this weekend it’s no longer just a single anymore as it found its way on to an EP. High Hopes is RELIC’s second EP and is comprised of three songs perfect for fans of NEEDTOBREATE, Kings of Leon, and The Rocketboys. RELIC is Jake Baker (vocals, guitar), Nathan Slonaker (drums), and Elias Lopez (bass). The rock n’ roll outfit is based out of Dallas, Texas. Give “Life of Earth” a listen on YouTube below.… Continued →

Here’s a song from Canada’s own, Lucerin Blue, who released Tales of the Knife in 2003 on Tooth & Nail Records. While the album is stacked with great alternative rock songs, “Chorus of the Birds” resonates. One of these reasons, I think, is that it was also featured on The Nail, Vol. 1, a classic T&N compilation. As a bonus, a video of Lucerin Blue performing live at Cornerstone 2003 has been added to the bottom of the post.… Continued →

I woke up this morning with this song in my head, so it clearly has the be the Song of the Day. Classic metal. You either love it, or just don’t really get the appeal. It’s 1986, and the only Christian metal that most people are aware of is Stryper. But hairspray and over-the-top production was not all that Christian metal had to offer in ’86. The same year the glam kings released To Hell with the Devil, Saint was dishing out their best album, Time’s End (in fact, it’s in the top 5 Christian metal albums of all time, IMO).… Continued →

Did you know that the repercussions of IVM shutting down in the summer of 2015 were so far reaching that it caused the music industry to move release day from Tuesday to Friday? Okay, so that’s not actually true. But is true that the week after Indie Vision Music closed its doors the music industry instituted a Global Release Day to standardize album and single releases around the world. So when the idea of starting a Song of the Day feature was floated to the IVM staff I volunteered to take Tuesdays because of their historical association (in North America) with new music.… Continued →

For whatever reason, The Moon is Down (2001) is rather inaccessible these days. It’s not on Spotify, or iTunes (R.I.P.), or Apple Music (edit: I’m from Canada). Yet, the quality of the album remains intact after 18 years. It took me all too long to hear “Monachetti,” given I own their compilation Hope This Finds You Well which excludes the track. The song shows an angsty side of Further Seems Forever that I hadn’t heard before, and I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do.… Continued →

Who remembers Sal Paradise? Obscure 90s indie rock band from Sydney, Australia (formerly known as The Crux–unrelated to the punk band). Those who do remember them are probably most familiar with their one and only album on Tooth and Nail Records, entitled “Further.” However, they had also released a few independent releases in their native country. This song, “Travels” made it to a Velvet Blue Music compilation in the form of an acoustic version. The electric version was darker, but just as moody. It was originally released on the Scatter release pictured here, but has popped in various other releases, including “For You and Before You” still available from the Velvet Blue Music shop here: https://velvetbluemusic.com/shop/sal-paradise-for-you-and-before-you/… Continued →

No one would blame you if you were suffering from a Christmas music hangover and missed the introduction of Census on IVM last year. But now you’ve got a second chance to discover the hard rock band from Little Rock, Arkansas! The band dropped their latest single “Curse of the Black Pearl” this past weekend along with a new music video which you can watch below. The new song features the return of Ben Carey on vocals and the continued shift away from their metalcore roots.… Continued →

Sometimes the songs that sound least like a band as a whole are their best songs. Mortal’s Nu-En-Jin (2002) is not a particularly calming album. They like to use a lot of distortion, and with the postmodern lyrics and spooky samples, this can make for a claustrophobic listen. However, “Mujo (Uncertainty Mix)” is about as chill as electronica can get, and reminds me of the perfect autumn day. Take a listen and see if the leaves don’t start changing colors.… Continued →

You might be familiar with a couple of Andy Hunter’s songs. “Go” and “The Wonders of You” have been featured in video games and movies like SSX 3, Need for Speed Underground, and The Italian Job. However, 2002s Exodus is far from a one-hit wonder; every song on the album is brilliant. Today I’d like to share a personal favourite, “Radiate”. While the song clocks in at over eight minutes, it does not drag on at all. Ultimately, it’s an encouraging meditation on Christ’s life which lives in us and through us.… Continued →

Cincinnati indie rock band Okay Lindon have released another single in advance of their next album.  The album will be a departure from their quirky brand of alternative rock, this time heading into reggae territory.  While an unconventional move, for sure, the seasoned band have the ability to pull it off.  Plus, the reggae sounds fit the new material well.  Founder Dustin Smith claims, “In this song I’m calling out aspects of my evangelical upbringing as ‘escapist theology’ which focused so heavily on an afterlife, that the joys of experiencing union with Christ in the physical world, ourselves, and others is lost.… Continued →

“A Song for Amy” is a sobering song which focuses on issues of sexual assault and the problem of evil. “Why do bad things have to happen to good people?” is the oft-repeated question. Bobby Bishop, who is not only a musician but also a social worker, included this incredible song on his 2003 album The Hip-Hop Alternative (Community’s Call).… Continued →

  Amazingly, this song is now 23 years old, and I still feel the same way about it as I did back then.  It’s a fantastic song, and one of the highlights of the Christian alternative rock scene!  Plankeye’s first album (“Spill”) was raw and unrefined, showing hints of Orange County punk.  While their second album “The Spark” had that same raw energy, the songwriting and musical chops had improved, along with just the right amount of production–not too raw, not too slick.  “Open House” is the standout track and has a great message of God’s love and grace even in times of difficulty. … Continued →

Last week Brandon started a new song of the day feature that focuses on beautiful, important, and defining songs from a band’s career. This week I’d like use the new feature to introduce you to a new artist from Sherman, Texas. WORDS is the latest addition to Honey Gold Records and the new project from Least of These vocalist Jonny Gore. Watch the lyric video for “Wake,” the second single off the upcoming album Trees below.   For more new music check out the Weekly New Release Sampler playlist on Spotify.… Continued →

Emo is not limited to rock; it can be hip-hop, too. Here is a song from an album that has remained far under the radar – even for underground hip-hop – since its release in 2006. Smoke is a member of Oldominion, a Northwest collective with over 20 members. While Oldominion are outside the margins of Christian music, Smoke’s solo release Bleed is more Christocentric in its lyrics. “Saylavee” focuses around those difficult thoughts and feelings that are inevitable in human life; the lyrics are dense and the sound is wistful.… Continued →