Obscure CCM Bands Vol. 3

There was a particular experience common to many of us who grew up around CCM in the mid to late 90's. It felt like the CCM market was flooded with all kinds of bands as labels tried to see which ones would 'stick'. Thus, there is this whole pool of "obscure" bands from which to pick from for these last several blog posts. Some emerged as real heavyweights - Switchfoot, Third Day come to mind. Others never got traction for whatever reason.

Shaded Red was a band that landed squarely in this latter category. I can't remember how I stumbled upon their first album. Probably either my friends Jason Zaugg or Dave Robertson - shout out to those guys. It may have been from hearing the single below in its brief run on the radio. The band actually did make its mark on the CCM world with its second album Red Revolution. "Revolution" and a cover of "When God Ran" drew praise from critics and fans. But even with some modest success, this second album would be there last. 

It's my personal theory that this band's trajectory was permanently altered by the tragedy that befell them before their last album was even released. They were in a car accident that killed their drummer and I can only imagine how hard this was to process, let alone continue as a group. 

But I will always appreciate the art they produced. In the vein of Jars of Clay, they mixed acoustic and electric guitars along with piano, and later horns to produce a classic "Christian grunge" sound. Their first self-titled album became a rarity - due to their original label closing up shop if I remember correctly. In fact, in the early 2000's, I remember shelling out at least $30 to help my friend Dave's girlfriend purchase it as a birthday present for him. We were all at a Christian rock festival and randomly came across it in a vendor's collection. 

Thankfully, someone's uploaded the entire album to Youtube. "Caught" and "Found Someone" are the favorites I always gravitate towards. Shoutout to Jamie and Jonathan Roberts and the rest of their crew who created some really good music in a really short period of time.

Tuesday Tunes - Obscure CCM bands Vol. 2

Music has this incredible effect of burning lyrics and melodies into our brains. Those things may lay dormant for years until a random trigger may cause them all to come flooding back into our heads.

Today's obscure CCM band is a perfect example of that for me. 

The Waiting had a signature style, a signature sound, and a signature way of conveying their message lyrically. 

They started to make a name for themselves with Blue Belly Sky in 1995. Their peak was in the late 90's, particularly with the release of their self-titled third album. 

For me, they were an example of a consumer-formula that made me a fan. They had some songs on some "sampler" CD's that labels put out to promote their newer bands. Those singles convinced me to shell out my hard-earned cash to get the full album. 

The aforementioned third album, The Waiting, is a solid effort top to bottom. At some points they remind me of R.E.M. but that's the closest I can come to a comparison. They had a way of hitting you upside the head with their challenging and perspective-questioning lyrics that you couldn't see coming. 

From my own memory, songs like, "Never Dim", "How Do You Do That?", and "Hands in the Air" got a lot of attention. But for me it was the second layer of songs like "Number 9", "Pride", and "Better off as Friends" that kept me coming back. The latter especially turned what would become trope on its head. Instead of writing a song that could be vaguely descriptive of Jesus or a boyfriend, this one intentionally used that relational category to expose how we often flippantly treat our Savior. 

In a similar vein, I must mention one verse from "My Pride" that stopped me dead in my tracks the first time I heard it and still convicts:

I've wandered like an orphan

Down every dirty street

Till I stood before the Man

Who bent down to wash my feet

It's easy to wallow in nostalgia and opine about how no one really writes like this anymore in the CCM world. I think it may be true in this case, especially when you digest their full catalog. 

According to their Wiki page, they haven't retired as a band, but the members have generally gone their separate ways and more or less faded into the obscurity of their local lives. They made a mark on this young listener however, and I am grateful for both their creative music and their creative songwriting.