Rock Your World
Alternative rock band Red
By Andy Argyrakis, Senior Music Editor, GospelMusicChannel.com
It may not garner the tabloid level headlines of Fall Out Boy front man Pete Wentz getting married (and confirming pregnancy rumors) with Ashlee Simpson, but Christian music has its own new alternative rock super couple. Tricia Brock, the ever-so-fashionable front woman for Superchick, recently spilled the beans over a proposal from Thousand Foot Krutch guitarist Nick Baumhardt. “It was pretty funny because a radio station was setting up a concert and called to book us, but we weren’t available because of the wedding,” she says of the summer nuptials. “Thousand Foot Krutch was also called, but they weren’t available either because the guitar player was getting married. And the DJ said, ‘that’s so weird because somebody from Superchick’s getting married that same weekend!”
Though both bands are touring titans, members promise to converge in the same place long enough for the ceremony, but then it’s back to the festival rounds. Yet Brock doesn’t mind the busyness since her future hubby is in the same boat, even suggesting that both bands will tour together at some point. “Superchick and Thousand Foot Krutch love each other and we’re all friends, so hopefully soon!” she hints. “We were gonna try for this fall and it didn’t work, so maybe next spring.” Before jumping too far ahead though, Brock is looking forward to her dream day and suggests a reception soundtrack loaded with ‘80s rockers (from Pat Benatar to Blondie and Cyndi Lauper). And even though she’ll be tying the knot, the latter’s “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” still serves as her ultimate party anthem.
Fresh off of dates with mainstream heavyweights Breaking Benjamin, Three Days Grace and Seether, alternative rockers Red continue to build momentum around their freshman release End of Silence. The Dove Award-winning group just released its latest music video “Already Over” (which is currently scoring major MTV2 airplay) and continues to split touring between spot dates with Seether and solo headlining slots. Yet the band is simultaneously preparing for a new record, slated to have an unexpected collaborator in ‘80s rocker Richard Marx (“Should’ve Known Better,” “Don’t Mean Nothing”). “I’m crazy about Red and I’m writing with them for their new album,” Marx tells us (whose recent Christian market credits also include Hawk Nelson). “Even before I started writing with them, I really loved the sound of their songs – they’re just a great modern rock band.”
Heavy-handed rockers Since October are poised for their Tooth & Nail Records debut May 27, though the Florida natives are far from freshman when it comes to the road. Throughout the past two years, the group’s touring credits include Underoath, Pillar, Seventh Day Slumber and Disciple to name a few. “We did what a ‘signed’ band would do – we quit our jobs and went on the road full time,” explains front man Ben Graham of the journey towards the label. “We started to get noticed by some promoters and they began to add to their bigger shows. Bigger shows meant bigger bands and we’ve actually had success in the mainstream market as well playing shows on the Saliva and Drowning Pool tour. We didn’t wait for people to call us. We did everything we could do to play anywhere.”
The band’s refinement on the road carried onto its debut disc This Is From My Heart, which features production from Travis Wyrick (P.O.D., Pillar, Disciple), along with P.O.D.’s Marcos Curiel, who co-produced and co-wrote two tracks. “We have all been P.O.D. fans since we started the band and always talked about meeting, touring or working with them some day,” Graham adds. “So it was crazy six years later being in a studio in San Diego writing music with Marcos and we really came out with some cool stuff!”
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About the Writer
Andy Argyrakis is a Chicago-based entertainment writer/photographer who appears in the Chicago Tribune, Illinois Entertainer, Daily Journal, Concert Livewire, Hear/Say Magazine and Image Chicago (to name few). His record label writing credits include Warner Brothers, Atlantic, Curb, EMI and Universal, with additional photo credits for Fuse TV, Live Nation, Nikon, Pollstar, Celebrity Access, Paste Magazine, MTV.com and Vibe.com. He’s also the author/narrator of “Access Matthews” (an audio CD tracing the career of Dave Matthews Band) and spends considerable time on tour, including outings with Arlo Guthrie, The Guess Who, Madina Lake (on Linkin Park’s Projekt Revolution) and Gospel Music Channel’s very own “Gospel Dream” (where he served as season one judge).
