Runrig

Some of the most beautiful music I've ever heard comes from Scotland, and a good portion of that music is by Runrig.  Formed in northern Scotland in 1973, the band took the name "Runrig" from the Scottish "furrow and ridge" farming style.

Runrig mix Scottish folk in with Celtic Rock, much like other "big guitar" bands like Big Country (another favorite) and many of their songs, particularly early ones, are sung in Gaelic. But rather than using spiritual imagery for pure poetic reasons, Runrig's core members and songwriters, brothers Callum and Rory Macdonald are devout Christians.  The  Macdonald's are also the sole remaining original members.

Also unlike Big County and U2, Runrig never had much success in the United States, and you're not likely to hear any "hits" on the radio, but lack of radio success certainly has nothing to do with quality.  (Nor does major success, but that's another argument.)  In searching out Runrig's music, the first major label album, "The Cutter And The Clan," is a good place to start, as well as 1993's "Amazing things" (called "the most life-affirming album ever made" by reviewer Glenn Mcdonald.)

Cross Rhythms interview, 1993 : http://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/39272/p1/
In A Nutshell: Runrig's Spiritual Message: http://www.s-line.de/homepages/ross/ebotschaft.htm

"Deviating From The Norm...Part 2"

My family and I have been in the process of purchasing a house and moving in, so I've been rather busy the past few weeks.  I'm working on a post about the Scottish band Runrig, meanwhile here's the second of my poem/artwork posts.  The drawing this time around is John Lennon.

Abandoned Houses

Hollow echo

Creaking open

Stale.

Broken glass

Sunlight.  Dust.

Still.

Silent?  Not silent.

Flies buzzing.

Footprints in dust.

Large room.

Loneliness, but not alone.

Quietness, but not silent.

Someone is speaking loudly here

In the stillness.

Loudflower - Happy Now?

1 Everyone But Me

2 Guess I Need You

3 Disaffected

4 Routine (Remix)

5 Clouds

6 Savior Business (Remix)

7 Crime Of The Century

8 Happy Now

9 Everything Rhymes With Wrong

10 Can't Change Yesterday

11 Color Of Heaven

12 5 Minutes After 3

13 Always Tomorrow

14 Comfortable Bed

15 Don't Say Goodnight

Sometimes when a band has only one album to their credit, you listen to that album and you immediately know why.  Other times, you ask yourself  "Why wasn't this a huge hit?  Why, when something that calls itself  "Lady Gaga" is selling millions of cd's, wasn't this band, that actually knew something about real music, more popular?"

Loudflower is Alt rock with horns.  Not Ska style horns. This sounds like Chicago's horn section accidentally got mixed in with a jam session by the Clash and REM.  It shouldn't work, but it does, beautifully.

A couple of the songs are labeled as remixes, but I'm not sure why, as no other versions of these songs were released anywhere. Gray Dot's 1996 "sampler" disc, "Same Three Chord's,"contained a couple of tunes, a different version of "Color Of Heaven" and an alternate version of  "5 Minutes After 3" titled "I Still Want You."  A 4 song ep titled "Christmas Killed us" was also released in '96, but that's the complete output of this band, and that is truly a shame.

What little I could find out about the band points to this being another CCM horror story.  It seems the band sued their record company for lack of a written contract, and they were held up in litigation for several years.  Because of the hurt this caused, and because of some internal "band" strife, they decided not to continue.  But they left behind a masterpiece.  Highly recommended, if you can find it.

Note:  None of the YouTube videos below feature music from the "Happy Now?" cd.  The first two are the alternate versions from the Gray Dot sampler,  but the main difference between them is much better production on the official release.  The third video is the title track from the "Christmas Killed Us" ep.

http://www.graydot.com/support/loudfx.html 

Classic CCM Radio.

For those of you out there who would like to hear more classic ccm instead of today's variety (which I have no problem with, but I want to hear some Norman, Stonehill, Keaggy and the Greg X. Volz version of Petra,) check out these great web stations.  Be blessed.

Spirit In Truth Radio   http://www.sntradio.com/

Streets Of Gold  http://streetsofgoldradio.com/Site/Welcome%20to.html

Classic Christian 24/7  http://www.classicchristian247.com/

Healing Stream Media  http://healingstreammedia.com/

wtwt FM  http://www.wtwtfm.org/

Full Circle Jesus Music  http://www.fullcirclejesusmusic.com/

Jesus Music Revival  http://tunein.com/station/?stationId=141885

Stryken - First Strike

 Original release

 Reissue

Okay, we're not talking about a bona fide classic Christian Metal release here, and I don't think a sillier album cover than the original release (shown above) has ever been designed. I have to admit, however, in spite of myself,  that I love this disc.  Nostalgia maybe. Certainly an appreciation for the band's zeal and love for God.

I first heard these guys when I picked up K-Tel's "Righteous Metal" compilation, which, along with tracks by Barren Cross, Bloodgood, Philadelphia and Jerusalem, included a remixed version of "Rock On" from the "First Strike" album.  The band was originally called Stryker, and was formed by brothers Dale and Stephen Streiker (real surname Hopkins) in the early 80's.  They recorded their only album under this name, "Blitzkrieg" in 1983. (The Blitzkrieg tracks were included as bonus tracks on the 2009 reissue of First Strike.  Believe me, they don't add anything to the listening experience.  However, if you really enjoy band demo's, they're a decent listen now and then.)  With Stryper's popularity growing in the mid 80's, the band changed their name to Stryken to avoid  confusion.

Not that they would be confused for Stryper.  Their look was totally different, and their sound had more in common with Glam Rock bands like Kiss or The New York Dolls than Heavy Metal like Stryper, although the vocals (handled by both Dale and Stephen) could be rather "Sweetish" at times.  They released the album "First Strike" in 1987.  

The band was very Evangelical,  and the most well known story about them is when they stood outside a Motley Crue concert, holding a large cross, and witnessing to people.  They tried to do this a second night, and were "detained" by the police while the concert continued.  

Strangely enough, Stephen Streiker (Hopkins) quit the band and became a fundamentalist minister, denouncing the very music he used to perform.  His brother Dale travels and performs for youth focused ministries.

"Deviating From The Norm..."

This post has nothing to do with music, it's just something personal I wanted to do, and since it IS my blog...:-)
I've been wanting to put together a small book of my poems and some of my artwork for quite a while, but never seem to get it finished.  So, I thought I'd post some of those poems and drawings here, for those who might be interested.  I may post this for a few days, and then change my mind.  But, anyway, I hope you all enjoy.

Just A Thought

When the sun sets

and the sky fades

When the stars fall

and our lives burn away

When Hell expands

and Heaven moves

When the knowledge we crave

And the nothingness we love

turns to dust…

You're still here.

And the liars and deceivers

The hypocrites and believers

The scoffers and deniers

The sellers and the buyers

Will finally see the one

That's been so much on their minds.

(August, 2005)

(Pencil, 1998)

Rage of Angels

A "One Album Wonder," this band came and went before their disc was released.  Their break up is one of the sad stories that's all too common in CCM.  In an interview in Heaven's Metal (issue #21) vocalist Danny Mariano said "The band was really baby, brand new, fresh.  There was only a couple of us in the band that considered ourselves Christians.  The other guys were just comin' around.  We were having bible studies and so on...all attending church.  They were pretty much excited about the whole idea of a Christian album and a Christian band.  As time went on, they saw the bad side of the industry or the Christian market."  This seems to be the story of several CCM bands.  Some overcome and survive, some don't.

Except for a bootleg of demos, this is the only material available from ROA, and that's a shame.  This is classic 80's commercial metal.  "Do you still believe in love" is one of my favorite Metal songs.

Before this album was released, drummer John Fowler and guitarist Frank DiCostanzo joined the mainstream metal band Steelheart, who were popular for a short time in the early 90's before Grunge totally wiped metal off the air.  Fowler passed away in March, 2008 of a brain hemorrhage.

CD review:  http://www.angelicwarlord.com/reviews/r/rageofangels89.html