• Sean and Daniel from Blood & Ink Records (we love you guys)

• Kevin from Beacons (we both live in NC and have to go to TN to hang out?)

• Jesus Steph

• The With Increase posse (and Doug, if he is coming….)

• Our homies in Venia

• Matt B from Carrying the Fire (coming out of mosh retirement?)

• XLooking ForwardX – let’s talk about Cormac McCarthy books please!

• Debater (aka Debtor) – bring me a cheese steak please…..

• Cool Cough – John & Harbor – can’t wait to hang again buddies!

• Strengthen What Remains – Joshua and crew – Miss you guys!

• Fravel – nuff said

• John Jackson – keep me from getting into trouble (he helps out at HXCChristian.com)

• FF56 – hope we can hang and finally get some kind of interview

• This Moment in Hardcore Crew (Matt and Nick)

• Clint (from Jawbone) and his wife Heather (YES I WILL FILM THE JAWBONE SET THIS TIME PROMISE)
• Friends – I loved you guys at Cornerstone last year, can’t wait to see you guys play again (and I need to pick up your album)

• Grumpy Old Man – Will he show up? Will he provide a PSA on stage during the fest? We’ll see….

I am sure that I forgot some people, and if I did, sorry, catch you at the show.  John and myself (Josh) are staying at the Marriott downtown.  I am flying in and get to the airport early on Friday morning, I will be around to hang out and do interviews if any bands are interested in doing a fun video interview or goofing off.  (you bring the goof, I’ll bring the camera).  Hit me up on facebook (if you are friends with me already), or email me at josh @ HXCChristian.com if you want to hang or setup a video interview and I can give you my cell number so you can text/call me.  We would love to meet you if we don’t know you already (or even if we do).

See you there!

There were so many great bands playing this year, in particular, Blood & Ink records did a B&I family and friends day at the Solace Stage (which spanned two different days).  What was cool about this show is that it included such great B&I bands as Venia, Jawbone, Friends, Dependency, Thin Ice, Ironwill, Thirtyseven, Divide The Sea, and Debtor, but also bands including Cool Cough (side project of the guys from Call To Preserve), Strengthen What Remains, Beggars, Call to Preserve, Messengers, Dynasty, and Gideon (whom are not on the B&I label).  What makes the fact that this was going on extra cool is the fact that our tent was wedged in between Solace Stage and Legacy Stage where all of these great shows were taking place.

Some of the highlights of the week were the following:

1.  Meeting so many of you that visit our site and post on the forum, and finally meeting many of the bands we interview in person and getting to know everyone better.

2.  Catching a few Dynasty sets.  I (Josh) really like this band and I think they are solid, their testimony is also very moving.  I think I almost broke my hand and wrist when I was dancing and clobbered some poor kid right over the head.  Turns out my hand is OK, if the kid I hit is reading this, sorry, hope you are OK!

3.  Getting Officer Negative to play the Legacy Stage on Thursday may have been a highlight of the week as well.  I knew of the band, but have never really listened to many of their songs.  Hanging with Chad (the singer) and Justin, Casey, and Rick (who was filling in on drums) was great, awesome bunch of guys, strong in the Lord.  It was awesome to watch everyone getting into their set, singing along, and dancing like a bunch of maniacs.  Plus, I am sporting my new Officer Negative shirt today!

Officer Negative – “JCHC” on Legacy Stage

Click here to view the embedded video.

4.  Final Call To Preserve sets at Cornerstone, while everyone is bummed that these guys are breaking up, it was cool to catch their last shows at Cornerstone.  I picked up their 7″ “Validation” as well, which I highly recommend everyone go and pick up.  These guys have grown musically over the years.  It was also fun to see Cool Cough, their side band with Harbor singing, and John playing guitar.  Good stuff.

5.  Debtor’s new material is awesome, nuff said.  The guys in the band are super cool, easy to talk with, and they blew up every set with their new songs.  Go and buy their new album Bloodseeds and Blood & Ink Records.

6.  Catching a full Graverobber set.  If you have not seen these guys live, then you are missing out.  They are like the Misfits of the Christian punk world, their music is tight, and their stage show is extremely entertaining.  Just a word of advice, if they are singing any song that includes the word “blood” in the title, run for cover.  Catch their midnight shows, way more fun then their daytime shows.

7.  True Liberty and FBS – again, both of these bands just keep getting better, and they are both tons of fun to hang with.  Make sure to catch them live if they happen to be coming through your town.

8.  Branching out – I checked out A Hill To Die Upon, I am not normally a metal fan, but these guys are actually really really decent, and when I listen to their stuff, there is a heavy undertone of hardcore in it.  Go and check them out.

9.  Strengthen What Remains and Clear Convictions – their split set was probably one of the most fun sets at Cornerstone.  Strengthen What Remains is out of Florida and the guys in the band are among some of the coolest you will meet.  Their music just keeps getting better and better.  Clear Convictions came all the way from Puerto Rico to play Cornerstone.  I was pissed that so many people slept on the this band during their set on Texas Stage, but I was glad that I was able to tape the set (check out video page).  Both of these bands are signed to On The Attack Records run by our friend Sammy.  Love you guys!  Make sure that you pick up both of their albums from On The Attack, worth every penny, and how often do you see the record label owner in the pit???  Now that is support for your bands!

Clear Convictions Set from Texas Stage

Click here to view the embedded video.

10.  Discovering new bands that everyone needs to check out.  Beggars, With Increase, Blackhole.

And number 11.  The super secret show at the barn.  WOW, Debtor and Beggars both played a set, and then there were three cover sets including songs by Minor Threat, Advent, Seventh Star, and Shockwave.  This was by far THE best show, held in the storage shed by the skate park.  There where probably two hundred people that showed up and only enough room for 50 in the venue.  I was lucky enough to get up in the storage rafters to tape some of the show.  It was insane.  And as one of the guys from Debtor told me, “I just had a huge smile on face the whole time cause it was so awesome.”  I agree that it was awesome and I think there should be more intimate shows at Cornerstone like this.  Check the video page for coverage of the event.  Sorry you missed it!
Over all, the event was great, seemed fewer people were there this year, actually seemed kind of empty this year.  Rumors are floating around that they may not have Cornerstone next year because they did not sell enough tickets this year.  I say, don’t listen to rumors and sit tight, they may change the look and feel of Cornerstone next year, but I find it hard to believe they will altogether cancel the event, it touches so many people’s lives.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thanks for all your support and for everyone that stopped in to say hello, your kind words and blessing edify what we do and why we do it. Until next year, God bless and be safe!

Check out our video page for more videos, you can find our youtube channel here, and make sure to “like” us on Facebook!

Josh and the HXCChristian.com crew (John, RJ, Katie, Seann, Doug and special helpers like Mike!)

And one more fun video of the “best of” Cornerstone!

Click here to view the embedded video.

This is our shirt design this year. Pretty cool huh?

Hey folks, the staff of HXCChristian.com will be descending on Cornerstone 2011.  We really look forward to fellowship with all our friends, new friends, and folks that we have not met yet.  This year we will be right next to our friends that run The Legacy Stage.  For those of you don’t know, Legacy Stage is THE stage if you want to catch all the hardcore and punk bands at Cornerstone.  HXCChristian.com will have our own tent this year and we will be having fun in the mornings.  We will have meet and greets during the week with various bands including Officer Negative, Strengthen What Remains, Clear Convictions, and several other bands.  We will be providing coffee for the meet and greets and probably some sort of breakfast, so be sure to stop in and check the schedule.  We will also have some freebies, so stop in and grab some DIY Gatorade and some HXCChristian.com stickers.

On Thursday evening we will have our annual “Christian Hardcore Spaghetti Dinner.” This is where the staff of HXCChristian.com serves you, the fans of the site and anyone else in appreciation for supporting our efforts. After all, we are here to support the bands, labels, and fans and help spread the gospel.  The dinner is free, but if you feel inclined, make a small donation and we can continue to feed as many hungry mouths as possible.

We will also have a special guest this year at Cornerstone.  This man has been around for a looong time.  You may know him from your neighborhood you grew up in, or perhaps your church.  “Grumpy Old Man” will be joining the staff of HXCChristian.com and will be making guest appearances.  You may even see him harassing some of the bands or in the mosh pit.  Just beware, he is a extremely grumpy and always irritable. (see video below)

Click here to view the embedded video.

We hope to see everyone at Cornerstone 2011, if you are there, please stop by our tent and introduce yourself to Doug, RJ, John, or Josh.  We would love to meet you!

God Bless and safe travels to the everyone heading to Cornerstone!

For those of you who have not heard, HXCChristian.com will have a comp album due out around March 16th.  Special thanks to our pals at Thumper Punk Records who helped with all the heavy lifting on the comp.  “We at HXCChristian.com are really excited for this comp album to be released,” says Josh of HXCChristian.com, “not only did a ton of great bands step forward to contribute to the album, but the proceeds will help HXCChristian.com to continue to have a great presence at music festivals such as Cornerstone.”  While HXCChristian.com keeps it overhead low by a pure DIY ethic, we really like to do it up at Cornerstone.  Last year, we had an official generator tent where we were able to have bands do “meet-and-greets” with all the folks who attend Cornerstone.  Leroy – lead singer for War of Ages, Andy – lead singer of A Plea For Purging, and the guys from Debtor, all came out to answer questions about the band, life on the road, and how God has used them to reach out to people at shows.  We also had a pancake breakfast with Call to Preserve, and a free spaghetti dinner where we must have fed 200 people.  We look forward to doing it bigger and better at Cornerstone this year.  So, by purchasing a download of this comp, or buying the disc will help support our efforts.

Enough about us…..Who is on the comp?  Well, we had 25 bands volunteer to put a song on the comp.  It is just short of a full disc of music.  There are two sides of the comp, hardcore vs. punk.  Here is the track listing:

Side A (Hardcore Side)
1.   Welcome to Hardcore Christian Radio
2.   “Familyhood,” In Shepherds Arms, Armor of God
3.   “Nineteen Eleven,” Braveheart, Speak to These Bones, 1981 Records
4.   “Pale Rose,” Messengers, Anthems, Facedown Records
5.   “Keep On Smiling,” Gorilla Warfare, Keep On Smiling
6.   “Big Question,” Carrying The Fire, Demo (2011)
7.   “Lazy Sunday,” Those Who Fear, S.O.T.S. Demo (2009)
8.   “The Seed,” Killing Years, Demo (2010)
9.   “Control Freaks Who’ve Lost Control,” Divinity Theory
10.  “Bare Heights,” Debtor
11.  “Voids,” Strengthen What Remains, Humanity, On The Attack Records
12.  “Season of the Starved Wolf,” A Hill To Die Upon, Infinite Titanic Immortal, Bombworks Records

Side B (Punk, Oi! and Ska Side)
13.  Welcome to Hardcore Christian Radio
14.  “Old Rugged Cross,” False Idle, Hymns of Punk Rock Praise, Thumper Punk Records
15.  “Revolution,” True Liberty, City of the One, Wounded Records
16.  “Walking Dead,” The WAY, The Fight Is Ours, Thumper Punk Records
17.   “Lost Cause,” The Kings Kids, Thumper Punk Records
18.  “Take Me Away,” The Rekoning, The Road Less Traveled, Facedown Records
19.  “They Hate You” (originally performed by FBS), Grave Robber, Exhumed, Rottweiler Records
20.  “Standoff,” FBS, Live Grenade
21.  “Mad At The Girls,” Lust Control, This is a Condom Nation, Captive Thought Publishing
22.  “You Forgot Something,” Unshackled, Overcoming Years, Thumper Punk Records and Caustic Fallout
23.  “Another Day Gone,” The Hoax, Stumbling Through, Thumper Punk Records and Caustic Fallout
24.  “Boxcutter,” Skamikaze!
25.  “10,000 Ladders,” Send Out Scuds, High Score
26.  “I Wanna Let You Out of the Box,” Destroy Nate Allen, Until My Ankle’s Better
27.  “Hope, UniSEF,” Can These Bones Live?

AND….for the big reveal, we have been teasing folks with what the album cover would be.  I am big fan of the punk DIY style and lifting an existing design or album cover.  SO…we were huge fans of the Christian Aerobics album that was released many years ago.  And we thought, what a better way to honor such an interesting piece of Christian art/Americana than to update it to “Hardcore Aerobics?”  After all, anyone who has ever been in a pit knows that it is a real work out!  Folks that buy the physical album will also get some cool info on the insert including an exclusive on the how and why the site was started.

How much? Digital downloads will be available and will be priced at $5, physical copies of the CDs will be $10 plus shipping ($2.50).  Also, we should be able to take orders on this site or from Thumper Punk Records.  So check back often before the 16th for more details.

Thanks for your support, thanks to the great folks at Thumper Punk Records, Caustic Fallout, Seth from False Idle, and all the fantastic bands that have contributed to the album!  See you at Cornerstone 2011 and God bless!

There was a last minute venue change.  The show will be held at the Campbellsville Community Center located at:
1425 OLD HODGENVILLE RD
Campbellsville, KY 42718

Everything else is the same!

Check it out!  In conjunction with HXCChristian.com there is a Pre Cornerstone Boogie Down in Campbellsville, Kentucky on Sunday the 27th of June.  If you are driving to Cornerstone from anywhere on the East Coast, then we want you to stop in Campbellsville, Kentucky, at Campbellsville University to celebrate Cornerstone 2010 with some great bands.  On the bill are Restore the Roar, To Seize and Surrender, In Shepherds Arms, Debtor (Blood & Ink Records), Worker, Dead Icons, and head lining The Showdown (Solid State Records).  This show is going to be a mix of hardcore, hardcore punk, pop punk, metalcore, and good old metal, something for everyone! We hope to see you there.  If you need more information, contact Doug at his email doug @ HXCChristian.com.  Here are the details, spread the word!

What: Pre Cornerstone Boogie Down
When: Sunday, June 27th, 5:30 PM (doors open)
Where: Campbellsville University – Campbellsville, KY – Badgett Academic Support Center
Cost: $7
Info: No Drugs, No Alcohol, No Fighting, No Drama
Visit our sister site for more info on shows in Campbellsville:  www.Campbellsvilleshows.com

Repost the flyer on your myspace, facebook, on your desk, on your car, in your town….you get the point.

In other news East Coast Christian hardcore band TEN33 unofficially officially announced (to me at least) that they are doing a reunion show in the near future.  If you know anything about these guys, then you know that they put on a great live show.  I caught up with Stephen who sings for the band and asked him about the upcoming reunion.  He didn’t have many details (he is currently working on setting up dates).  He said that they are working on some shows for a weekend in the fall.  It sounds like they may have a couple of shows.  Interestingly enough, they are not going to be playing their hometown of Richmond, Virginia.  They are trying to pick somewhere neutral to play because there is another well known band that is also reuniting to play some shows with them.  Stephen would not reveal the details of who that other band is, but I have my guess (although he would not confirm it).  I guess we will have to wait and see.   So check back with Ten33 on the their Facebook page, that seems to be the best place to catch up with them and to find out more about the reunion show.  I also asked him if they might be laying donw some new tracks “We may release a song, we may not. depending on recording studio time,” according to Stephen.

New Call To Preserve album is dropping on June 8th on Facedown Records.  The name of the album is Life In Defiance.  I was lucky to get an advance copy of the album the other day and have been listening to it non stop.  There are so many great songs on this album and it is sure to please Call To Preserve fans and hardcore fans in general.  Again, the band fuses together many styles of hardcore music and even slows things down a bit for one of their songs (still hardcore, just a bit more dark).  The lyrics are spot on.  The album was recorded at Warrior Sound here in North Carolina (the folks that did the last Advent album) and the production quality is fantastic.  I won’t give away to much about it, but I can tell you that you will not be disappointed.  If you want to hear a few of their songs, check out their myspace page.

Overcome is back together and has new material.  According to the Facedown Records website, this was the first band that signed with Facedown.  They disbanded a while back, but wanted to put out new material.  They are also playing Cornerstone Festival this year.  I am looking forward to catching the band live.   If you want to check out their new stuff, go visit their myspace page.

Blood & Ink Records released two albums the week of April 24th.  Two great hardcore bands have albums that are a must have.  The first is Thin Ice, we did an interview with them you can check out HERE.  Thin Ice’s new album is called “Revelation Through Tribulation.”  I really like these guys, they are a young band and I think that this is great starting point for them.  The album is traditional style hardcore, they compare their sound to bands like Figure Four and Advent.  The other band that put out their album was Dependency, the name of the album is “Convicted.”  I confess that I don’t know a lot about these guys, however, their album is really growing on me.  I don’t really know how to categorize these guys musically, but their base sound is definitely hardcore influenced, the vocals are pretty solid too.  I highly recommend going to the B&I website and downloading both albums (they are both available for digital download, and for only $5.99 each, it is a steal).

Ever wonder what happened to the dudes in xLooking Forwardx?  Well, look no further.  Justin is leading up the band Carrying the Fire out of Maryland.  Matt from the band posted on the forum about the band.  Justin delivers his vocals in classic xLooking Forwardx fashion and the band is fantastic.  I have listened to their free demo (which you can download from their myspace page) over and over.  While the band doesn’t really claim to be “Christian” it is hard for Justin’s belief in God to know boil over into the bands songs.   Matt also informed me that the band is looking to do shows out of state in the next couple of months, probably East Coast shows since most of the dudes in the band have families and kids.  Go and get their demo, you will love it, plus it is free!  Can’t beat that!

Written by Doug Hurt – Contributor to HXCChristian.com

I miss the “good ole days”.  That is really the only statement that I can make.  People were going to shows for the pure fact that that is where they truly wanted to be.  They wanted to be a part of something.  And the bands that were a part of this scene were ready to book a show with friends that they had.  The thought of a booking agency was just unheard of.  If you saw someone new, you would walk up and introduce yourself.

Let us fast forward to now.  I am not a fan of these days of so called “hardcore”.  I put hardcore in parenthesis for the fact that the true meaning of why this was all started is no longer alive.  It is no longer shows, we have concert events.  Bands have these big named booking agencies that will not talk to you unless you go through their agent.  And their agents will not talk to you unless you have a cool concert promotion name and are willing to pay a so called “hardcore” band $8000 to come play with a stage plan and a tour rider.  I have always said…  if you want to become rich, go be in a bar band playing creed covers.

The fact is that most of the people that were all about hardcore pride we’re the ones that turned their backs and said “Forget this!”  Now they hang out at the bars listening to talentless indie rock talking about how the “kids” are dumb and need to grow up.

Now is a time that we have to make a choice to just either walk away from all of this and let the ones that have no idea what this was about and should be about, or we step up and say “Enough is enough!  We want this scene back!”

Bands should stop writing songs about taking it all back and lead by example and actually take it back.  That means book your own shows and stop giving 15% to someone else that has no clue what is going on at your shows.  It is time for kids to learn how to book and promote shows and start booking shows and paying the bands what the bands deserve.  It is time for kids to start going to shows with the whole principle that we are gathering as a family.

I place a lot of this pressure on the bands.  Especially our Christian bands.  Jesus did not need a booking agent to tell him when he could go do his work.  You guys that call yourselves a Christian band have a responsibility to go out and tell this scene that they are loved and that there is a God of compassion and generosity out there.  I can tell you that when kids hear about bands making $12,000 and are Christian and then sell their merch for outrageous prices, these bands put an even more sour taste in their mouths about Christianity being a big business.  I am sure some bands will say “We need this money to live.”  To that I say, get a job.  Ministry is not for those that are worried strictly about money.  If the band is what God’s purpose is for you, then you and your families will reap the benefits of heaven now.  And some bands have said “We have to pay for this bus.”  Then sell it!  Buy a van and trailer.  It is not that hard.  And if you are unsigned, why do you have a booking agent?  Really? You are a band doing what you love with your friends, why take away from the true meaning of what this is all about by making it about business?

I place the pressure on the kids booking shows that they do what they can to have a safe place for kids and to do what they can to make sure these bands are blessed.  This means putting yourself out there and showing these bands that you are booking shows for the right reasons and that you are not pocketing $1000 off of a show that made $1500 especially charging $15 for a show and not promoting for it at all.  We never had contracts back then.  But we booked shows and made it, and if people kept
screwing over bands, then we would send our friends in other bands to book elsewhere.

I also place pressure on the old schoolers to show the new kids what the scene is really about.  How are these kids supposed to know if we just take the quick exit?  There are still a lot of us out there that can show these kids that this is not just a concert experience, this is a life experience.

So we need to start booking shows with bands that are strong enough to book their own shows.  If they are on a label that makes them use an agent, then someone should start a label that lets the bands play where they want to play and when they want to play.  We need to start showing these bands that if they want to play to a crowd with no heart or soul that they can do those shows without us.

So in closing, hardcore was never about agents, tour riders, managers or making the big bucks.  It was about reaching out to kids.  Plain and simple, bands are just people in bands.  The key word is “people.”  That means you are not better than the kid that had to save money all week just so he could pay to come to your show.

So take a step back this week and spend just one day thinking about what I have talked about.  If you have any questions or comments you can email me at doug @ hxcchristian. com

Monday:

Strangely, my first show of the week came via the youthful Nashville death-mongers As Hell Retreats. Big hardcore style beat downs and fast blast beat sections could easily have overwhelmed the bulbous crowd assembled at the large generator stage (I’ll not name it) if the sound had not been an obvious hatchet job. I’ve rarely seen such a blatant attempt to monkey wrench a band but fortuitously team ‘Retreat showed a professionalism rare in many young bands and worked through it. The punters responded favourably and a good time was had by all regardless. Kudos to them.

A chance meeting with some friends from Denmark heralded a some great entertainment from Solace The Day on the Greenlight generator stage. The sound was poor but the wiry Vikings swung their dreads and contorted their way through a half hour of fairly convincing slovenly southern metal. Unfortunately, it became apparent that with so many ultra-tight metal bands at the fest STD’s calculated slop-core seemed to go over the heads of many of the passers by. I couldn’t believe that so many seemed to miss the point that its meant to sound like that.

During the general malaise of what I call ‘festival admin’ – setting up tents, bimbling around and finding your friends etc. – I found myself distracted by the horde making their way to the Anchor tent and a band hitherto unknown to me called Children 18:3. A kind of east coast punk thing set out by this 3 piece seemed to go down well with the large mob assembled and a proper excited vibe became apparent. It I thought they where quite good but that their attempt to show off the skills of their more than proficient drummer fell a little flat with me.

A Hill To Die Upon on the impromptu stage at midnight provided me with my first ever black metal show (or ‘black death’ as I was later corrected) and a fearsome spectacle it was. Extremely aggressive, tight and focussed I was impressed enough to decide to explore the genre more thoroughly upon my return to blighty.

So day 1 down and its metal: 3, punk: 1. But Tuesday is still to come…

Tuesday:

FBS (Fight Before Surrender) where nasty as ever, whipping up the crowd and pummelling out the low down street punk in short sharp bursts, just like yo momma used to make. I consider these guys a festival essential and suffice to say they brought the goods and all where summilarly rocked. Nuff said.

For me, cornerstone this year was all about Tuesday punk at Fatcalf. I missed earlier sets from the likes of Destroy Nate Allen and True Liberty but managed to get back in the game in time for the ever faithful Scurvies. I was disappointed that the bands whole line up had been replaced but the Aleutian quad brought the beef none the less. Flanked by two former members of the Mainline Riders, singer Chris held court over a crowd who where intent on freaking out – and freak out they did indeed. A large, fast but sparsely populated circle pit opened up and bodies flew out of the way like rag dolls. Pure rock n roll is rarely as pure as this. The Scurvies are thoroughbreds and you NEED to see them.

Revolution Radio stepped up to the mark and provided some respite from the madness with a good old sing along. Aaron has a knack of connecting with the audience and much singing along entailed. Backed by the boys from the Last Hope and sporting a new drummer RR seemed to be flexing some new muscle and really enjoying themselves. Half an hour with this band is time well spent.

A few band later and bumbling on stage came Sexually Frustrated. Decked out in splendidly tasteless Hawaiian shirts they barrelled through a host of intense hardcore numbers, stopping only to allow space for the totally entertaining poetry of their mascot Mikey. This band is a joy to watch – pure and simple. It was also cool to see loads of girls watching a purity band and I was surprised to find out that it was their first show in a Christian environment. I can only deduce that there where some fairly rowdy crowd antics in the offering as I was buffeted from all sides, having worked my way forward to shout along like a mad man. Sheer glee.

Having lost my shirt in the SF swim pit I took the opportunity to grab a couple of Flatfoot shirts and ran to my tent to deposit them. Upon returning to Fatcalf I heard the sounds of OCD (Our Corpse Destroyed) covering Black Flags Rise Above and ran join the fun. I braked hard as what can only be described as utter carnage met me. The maddening scene comprised of the stage brimming over with punters all gleefully making a grab for the mic. Bodies where surfing from the drum kit into the generous pile up enveloping the stage and the circle pit was nothing short of a frenzied drag race. Ill be honest – my bottle went and already knackered by the preceding bands I decided to enjoy this one from the sides. In all my 32 years I have never, ever, witnessed a gig with such ferocity to have such an unbelievably positive vibe. A new wave of craziness swept over the crowd as Reap What You Sow opened up and my resolve broke and I lobbed my aching frame into the fray to bark along with all my heart. The chant of REDEEEEEMPTION! REDEMP-TION TODAY! must have been heard all the way to the main stage. Amazing.

Few people could have followed this set and the knackered crowd thinned considerably for relative newcomers Brain Freeze. Cheap and nasty in all the right ways the three piece rattled out a bunch of loose fitting choons at a reasonably receptive crowd. Personally, I was glad of the relief from the intensity and enjoyed laughing along with their happy go lucky chant-o-pop. Good times and Mickey Mouse ears are their modus operandi and very effective it is too. A turn in events came with a cover of Jesus Christ Hardcore brought a sudden rush of people darting in from the edge of the tent and further a field to grab the mic and throw their lungs into it.

Here is some great video of Dougle with the Rodent Emporium at Cornerstone this year.  See if you can figure out which is Dougle (sorry Doogs, couldn’t resist sharing this with the world and perpetuation the Doogs legend!!)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Tuesday was a triumph, but Wednesday is coming…

I would like to take two paragraphs to explain a few things, so if you are impatient skip ahead. First, I would like to take a moment to describe Cornerstone (C-Stone). C-Stone is a Christian music festival unlike any other. There are no real security guards no bouncers and a chance for nearly anyone to play music. Cornerstone is free flowing and a key to that is the generator stages. There is a regular schedule just like any other festival but anyone who pre-registers a stage can bring their own generator and let bands or themselves play.

 

Our coverage at cornerstone won’t be press coverage. We will just be sharing our C-Stone experience with those of you who are unable to attend. So enjoy hearing band names you have never heard of and tales of valor on the dusty battlefields of Illinois.

 

I have been very lax on doing any sort of reporting duties today (as minimal as they will be) but I did want to share a few things.

As with any festival half of the point is running into some bands you have never heard of before. I would like to share with you a couple that I thought were quite good and worth checking out.

 

Varcella – A good post hardcore band, they reminded me a lot of Spoken. I was quite impressed, they were very guitar driven and the front man was involved with the crowd. I plan on trying to catch up with these guys later.

 

When Forever Falls – They were a hardcore band I saw and didn’t write many notes about other than “they were not bad”

 

Before there was Rosalyn – This hardcore band made it clear who their savior was. A good sized crowd of about a hundred gathered to dance and enjoy the music, Before there was Rosalyn did not disappoint the crowd. I look forward to seeing this band later in the week when they are on one of the official stages.

 

Harp and Lyre – Decent stuff, really enjoyed their set and worth checking out.

 

Children 18:3 played to a fairly full crowd at the Anchor Stage. The band was slow to start they did not seem to get into a groove right away, but by the third song Children was rocking like I would expect them too. The crowd knew the songs being played and was singing along with the music. The oddest thing about the show was the drum solo, As with all things which are boring it seemed to drag forever. I was standing there thinking to myself “this is a punk show not a metal show… why on earth is there a drum solo?” All in all though the band was looking and sounding good. The anchor stage has excellent sound and plenty of room for them to jump around.

 

The best show of the evening by far was FBS (Fight Before Suurender). I have seen FBS several times before this show and was not expecting anything different, boy was I wrong. I have never seen them more comfortable than on the Fatcalf stage. The tent was just a bit over half full but the crowd that was there were FBS fans. The crowd was just loving how comfortable FBS looked and did not want them to stop. FBS is playing other times this week but that will definitely set the bar high for that band. That is all from Monday at C-Stone I look forward to the upcoming days and will be bringing you pictures and video. One last note never forget why we were put on this earth and that is to glorify God, so go out today and make a joyful noise unto His name!

Many of you probably know the name Jason Berggren, and if you don’t then let me enlighten you. Jason was the original lead singer of perhaps one of the most influential Christian hardcore bands ever. Bet you can’t guess what band that is….if you guessed Strongarm, then you are right. Jason has an interesting story to tell, and he recently penned his first full length book called “10 Things I Hate About Christianity.” I have read the book and really enjoyed it. I am not a “great reader,” ask my parents, getting me to pick up books when I was a kid was impossible, so thankfully, Jason wrote his book so a dolt like me could understand it and easily relate to it. I started reading and was hooked from the first few pages. I actually sat and read most of the book on a business trip while in the air (connecting flights both ways gives you lots of time).

When I initially heard that the title of the book was going to be “10 Things I Hate About Christianity” I thought “hate, there is a strong word that directly contradicts everything I believe as a Christian.” But Jason also realizes that and does a good job of explaining his rationale, and well, yes, he hates the fact that there are certain things he struggles with regarding his faith, not big doubtful things, but things that really get under the skin of REAL Christians. For example, questions that are just not easy to answer that people who are not of faith might ask….like “if God loves everyone, then why is there suffering?” or even simpler, prayer, I think all of us have had moments where we think that God might not be listening or even hear us.

In his book, Jason tackles 10 areas he has struggled with or still struggles with, namely faith, prayer, the bible, sin, rules, love, hell, answers, church, and Christians. Jason does a great job at framing the questions that have caused him to stumble or frustrated him in his faith, and does his best to give his “everyday guy” response, which I love because it is written in a way that I can relate to and understand.

So would I recommend this book? Of course. It is a good read, it will make you laugh and shake your head and say “AMEN BROTHER” out loud. Jason has a self deprecating sense of humor that makes him and his stories real. He lays it all out for anyone reading the book, which is great, because you don’t get the feeling that Jason would ever look down his nose at any other Christian. Plus, the inside scoop and stories about Strongarm are pretty entertaining too, it shows you that even Christian bands struggle with being humans too. Coming from the hardcore punk scene myself, I know first hand how people can frustrate you that are “Christians.” Those who think that their way is the only way. We are Christians, not perfect and far from sin free, but we all have one thing in common, we love Christ and know that in the end when we meet Him in person, we can say that we did our best in this life, even if we know we all fall short!

You can go and purchase Jason’s book on Amazon, or from his blog “10 Things I Hate.” Also, be sure to check out Jason’s blog “More Things I Hate,” be sure to leave comments about the book or you can check out Jason this summer at Cornerstone fest, he will be there promoting his book, and playing a tribute to Strongarm set with they guys from Life In Your Way backing him up. Best of luck to you Jason and we hope that God blesses you and moves you to write more books. Best wishes!