Meet Me In Motion - a band fairly new to the Christian music scene, but poised to quickly move up in the ranks. Comprised of three stellar guys, and based out of Columbus, Ohio, Me In Motion is off to a great start. And it sure doesn't look like they'll be slowing down anytime soon.

Let's begin with some introductions. Seth Mosley, lead vocalist and guitar player, is the one who started the band. When? Nobody seems to be exactly sure, but the consensus is that it was about two years ago. "I had been working in the studio as a producer for a couple of years, and knew for a fact that I couldn't sit down in one place for a long time. I just love the spontaneity of being on the road for a long time and meeting lots of cool people and playing music that reaches out to people," says Seth. When I asked him what he would like the fans to know, he replied with a very important fact. "If you ever come see us at a show and want to give us any presents, we really like Mamba candy."

Try as they may to be objective, even the most serious musical analyst, if they're being truly honest, will tell you that their favorite songs aren't necessarily the ones that make it to the top of the charts, or those whose composers are the most technically proficient or even the ones that the highest number of their fellow critics laud as essential. No, the music they hold nearest and dearest is almost always that which calls to mind a defining moment in their past; whether it be the unity candle song from their wedding, the closing number from the senior prom or, for those in the baby boom contingent, the first 45 RPM record they ever bought.

For many a member of the Christian alt-pop camp, February 26, 2004, will forever remain, to quote FDR’s famous 1941 war address, a date which will live in infamy. It was on that day that Matt Slocum sent an open letter to CCM Magazine informing the music world at large that Sixpence None the Richer, the group for which he had served as lead guitarist and songwriter for over a decade, would be no more. But even as fans of the band who opened the pages of the March issue of CCM, where the letter appeared, sat in stunned silence at Slocum’s announcement, they simultaneously took solace in the wording of his parting note, “goodbye ...

Jars of Clay's Stephen MasonI heard Bono proclaim that, “I don’t believe that Rock-n-Roll can really change the world.”  The Music Builds Tour rolled across America this year in hopes that Rock-n-Roll could really change one person, one place at a time. Hoping that if they can draw attention to cause of Habitat for Humanity, then maybe they can raise the level of awareness needed to make a difference in someone’s life.  And that my friends would begin to change the world.

This tour featured 3 Redlight managed bands: Third Day, Switchfoot, and Robert Randolph and the Family Band, along with the independent Jars of Clay and RED (on select dates).

Michael Barnes of Red rocks the main stage at Purple DoorWe first met Red at GMA week in 2006 as part of a New Artist Feature.  Two years later, the quintet from Nashville is still touring on their debut release, End of Silence.  We had the privilege of meeting up with Michael Barnes, lead vocalist, during his few short hours in his hometown during a tour with 3 Doors Down.  It was a spontaneous interview, yet packed with great information.  In the ten minutes we sat down together while Michael ate lunch, we found out a bit about what Red has been up to since we last sat down together, some discussion about “Christian” versus “mainstream”, the direction of their sophomore release, and more.

inReview: Two years ago when we met, you were a fairly new band.  Tell us a summary of what has been happening in the last two years.

Michael: Last year just doing a lot of shows.  We have been touring a lot.  Last year alone we did about 250 shows.  [We were] on the road for about 300 days, really.  We have just been really busy.  We played with some bands like Sevendust, Breaking Benjamin, Three Days Grace, and just recently with 3 Doors Down.  Just really taking off, doing well.

Sintaxtheterrific probably makes more money than you. The South Carolina-based emcee is an attorney by day and rhyme-spitter by night and, as such, doesn't need hip-hop to survive. But the artform is a passion of his, and one that has produced a good deal of quality music.

In addition to his contributions to spiritual rap uber-collective Deepspace5, Tax has produced two solo projects since 2004: Simple Moves and Curb Appeal, which was released in 2006. We caught up to him at Gospel Music Association (GMA) Week in Nashville earlier this year. Read on...

inReview: When we last spoke to you, "Simple Moves" was about a year old and you were still working as a lawyer. Are you still doing the lawyer thing?

sintax: I am still an attorney.

From the opening track on Fall to the very last chord played on Summer, Jon Foreman grabs the listener's attention. Whether it's the instrumental accompaniment on each track or how his storytelling takes you on a journey, these 24 songs leave a vast impact on the listener. While most may recognize Jon as being the frontman of San Diego-based band Switchfoot, of his recent solo project Jon has said, "A lot of these songs are the more personal songs that don't really belong on a band record." The listener can agree as the EP's seem to encompass one man's sadness, loneliness, and heartache as well as his hopefulness and determination at finding peace within his world, his God and himself.

Jars of Clay is at it again.

After leaving their previous record label, the men of Jars are in the studio working on a new CD. To whet the appetite of their fans they have released an EP of songs to iTunes called Closer. When I heard the first song released, the title track "Closer", I was taken back by the lightheartedness of the song. Usually a Jars of Clay song is deep and multi-layered. They can be considered a "deep-thinking" man’s band. Not that the casual listener won't like their music, but without much thought you really don't understand or grasp the full meaning of most of Jars of Clay’s material. So listening to the casual, almost silliness of "Closer"
had me wondering if I was hearing a new Jars of Clay.