About Covenant31
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| Get Covenant31's Latest Single on iTunes today! |
If you want to hear some
fresh music for the new year that revisits and combines the early sounds of Bebo Norman, Third
Day and Casting Crowns made popular in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s…check out
the up and coming band Covenant 31.
I recently got a chance to interview them
on what’s new, and what’s been brewin’ for awhile, for their band. So, readers.
Have a seat, and let’s get you acquainted…
So… Band name. Your
website says you get Covenant 31 from the passage in Jeremiah 31:31-34. Below
is the NIV version of the verse pasted from Bible Gateway. Jeremiah 31:31-34 (NIV)
31 “The days are coming,”
declares the Lord,
“when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel
and with the people of Judah.
32 It will not be like the covenant
I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband to[d] them,[e]”
declares the Lord.
“when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel
and with the people of Judah.
32 It will not be like the covenant
I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband to[d] them,[e]”
declares the Lord.
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| Buy Covenant31's Music on iTunes! |
33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel
after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
34 No longer will they teach their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,”
declares the Lord.
“For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.”
after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
34 No longer will they teach their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,”
declares the Lord.
“For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.”
Q - Provide us a little insight into this passage and
also, why the band decided to hang their hat on it.
A - Well we
LOVE the whole idea of covenant - how God came to man to make a covenant with
him and when man could not fulfill his side God stepped down into our world and
Jesus fulfilled the covenant and made the way for all who would believe on Him!
WOW! what a LOVE!
Your band has released 2
independent albums to date. Your self-titled debut studio EP, Covenant 31 in
2008, and your latest album, Power in the Name, recorded with Grammy nominated
producer Ed Cash (Bebo Norman, Aaron Shust, Steven Curtis Chapman, Chris
Tomlin, Chris August, Kari Jobe, Matthew West, Dave Barnes, Toby Mac, Matt
Maher, Moriah Peters, Bethany Dillon and more).
Q – What was it like
recording with Cash?
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| Get the Power In The Name single on iTunes! |
A – Ed (and Scott) Cash are Awesome!!! that sums
it up! But to clarify... We loved how Ed and Scott (Ed's brother) would bathe
everything in prayer! Before they even
agreed to work with us they prayed about it, then before even recording a lick
they prayed with us seeking God's will and blessing etc... And beyond that Ed
has an amazing talent for producing and bringing things out of our voices and
instruments that we would never have thought of, making the music even better!
It was a great experience - Can't wait to do it again soon!
Q – I would have been
floored to work with Ed Cash. How did the band and Cash meet?
A- Well,
Heather [singer, keyboardist] actually submitted some songs to him in email, and did not hear back
right away. Then an email arrived saying that they would like to consider
recording for us. We did not meet live
until we went to Nashville to their studio.
We did however have some Skype sessions with Scott beforehand.
One of your earlier
singles, Your Love Is, (see a short behind-the-song story, here) possesses a sincere longing to
be closer to the heart of God. It is a very genuine song. As a listener, I like
this in a song.
Q- Was this one of the
pivotal singles that got your band’s feet off the ground, or were there other
stand-out songs that caught agents’ and producers’ ears?
A- Our first
song that really caught attention was "Man on the Cross". It was picked up by over 750 stations
worldwide. Australia's big radio network
that resembles our KLOVE here in the U.S. picked it up and apparently loved
it!
The release of
"Your Love Is" came after that and was also a success in radio. More importantly, it has had success in
connecting people to God in a very real and vulnerable way. "Your Love Is" really accentuates
the true state we are in as humankind - messed up! But God's Love does not come
down to us with a giant list of to-do's before we can know Him and be known by
Him! Jesus broke the way wide open for
us to come back to God - and it is that Love that is enough.... to capture our
hearts... to leave us in awe of what the ALMIGHTY God has come to do for us
broken human beings! And He delights to
save us and then use us..... that is just astounding!
Let’s step back and talk
about the song and video for Power in The Name.
When I first saw this
video I actually cried a little because of the story lines depicted. The video
shows a young girl contemplating abortion, an older Christian man dealing with
issues of self-righteousness, and an alcoholic father at the brink of almost
losing his wife and family.
Q- Are some of these
story lines any particular close friends or families’ testimonies which
inspired the song? How was the production of the video chosen to complement the
song’s message of the spiritual freedom from our chains of sin that Jesus’
blood provides?
A - We have
met people everywhere we go with stories like these. It is heartbreaking to see how so many people
are broken in so many ways. I know we
are all broken in our own ways. We get to see and hear a little of the extent
to which this world is so torn apart and we see and hear people so in need of a
Love that won't let them down and won't let them go! It makes you wonder what God must feel as He
sees it ALL at the same time, His compassion must be overflowing!
But the ALWAYS
answer is Jesus! His blood has secured
the way! - and there is NO other Name given amongst men by which we MUST be
saved! We had to proclaim that message and to do so
we chose those 3 story lines, because they are common issues. We really wanted the video to be
Jesus-centric, and I love the way it turned out! I think everyone can see that
Jesus is the KEY to healing from these things and everything else for that
matter!
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| Buy Covenant31's Music on iTunes! |
Q - I Am Changed is your
latest single. What are some life
experiences for the band that inspired
this song?
(P.s. listeners…here’s a LIVE video of the song!...if you were to mix the heartfelt lyrics and acoustics of Bebo Norman with the vocals and harmonies of Third Day, something like this song would be born. )
(P.s. listeners…here’s a LIVE video of the song!...if you were to mix the heartfelt lyrics and acoustics of Bebo Norman with the vocals and harmonies of Third Day, something like this song would be born. )
A - Of course
the application of this song is universal - it can touch every believer who is
in that place of struggle, to know that we are changed forever because of
Jesus. But the actual inspiration came
from one particular story.
We had a young
lady friend who got pregnant - she wasn't married. And this baby was really a catalyst to bring
her to Jesus. One night 2 days before
the baby girl was due our friend went in to the hospital to find out her little
baby girl had died in utero - the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck. We were all stunned! Saying "God, you used this baby to bring
this friend to yourself, and now you are taking her little baby girl!?, We
don't understand!......... but..... we
trust You." So Heather, having a similar life story to this friend, went
and ministered to her at the hospital, and I grabbed my guitar and went into the
garage and this song came right out.
The great news
is that God loves us dearly and we can trust Him in everything that happens to
us here on Earth(the good and the bad), and we can rejoice that we have an
eternal home FOREVER with Jesus when this whisp- vapor of a life is over. Eternally secure no matter what happens here.
Praise God our
friend did have another healthy baby boy!
And as you can imagine is the delight of her mother's (and
grandparent's) hearts!
And now – for the BlogTraveler Five. The Five Questions I ask everyone I interview...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Q – In 5 words or less,
who/what is your target audience?
A- The World, Believers and Unbelievers
A- The World, Believers and Unbelievers
Q- What is the mission
of your music/songs?
A- To project and announce the good news (gospel) that Jesus saves! And to encourage those who already know Jesus about who we are in Him!
A- To project and announce the good news (gospel) that Jesus saves! And to encourage those who already know Jesus about who we are in Him!
Q- What result would you
want to see happen by the listeners of your songs? (5 yrs, 10 yrs, tomorrow?)
A- We would love to see people understand the gospel and get saved! first off. And be able to see people use these songs of ours to bless their souls every time they listen.
A- We would love to see people understand the gospel and get saved! first off. And be able to see people use these songs of ours to bless their souls every time they listen.
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| L to R; Ashley-Bass/Sound Engineer, Patrick-Lead Singer/Acoustic Guitar, Dave-Electric Guitar, Heather-Singer/Keys, Josh-Drummer |
Q- What is the band’s
life Bible scripture right now?
A- That is a
hard one.... so many good verses.... I would have to say one of our fav's is:
Zephaniah 3:17
"The Lord
your God in your midst,
The Mighty
One, will save;
He will
rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet
you with His love,
He will
rejoice over you with singing.”
Kind of hard
to imagine sometimes :
God singing over us - but that is what the scripture
says!
Q- Who is Jesus to you?
A- Jesus is compassionate, loving, AMAZINGLY patient Savior, Almighty Creator, who gave everything and paid everything so we could come back to God.
A- Jesus is compassionate, loving, AMAZINGLY patient Savior, Almighty Creator, who gave everything and paid everything so we could come back to God.
(Almosts
sounds like a song....... hmmm....... might have to write something from
that......)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Q – So…where can fans
sample your music for Free? Didn’t I see an exclusive track available for a
limited time on your website? Elaborate a little on this…
A – Right on
our website at: http://covenant31.com/
- there is a player to sample several of our songs. Of course you can find us
on Itunes as well: https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/covenant-31/id302884350?ign-mpt=uo%3D4
Q – I see you have a few
September, 2013 Arizona dates. How can the fans and interested churches/venues
get involved to book you for their events?
A- the best
way is to contact us at email: info@covenant31.com
Or on the
website: http://covenant31.com/contact
Fans can hear your music
and share it on:
http://www.reverbnation.com/covenant31
, https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/covenant-31/id302884350
, https://myspace.com/covenant31
,
Your fans can find the
band on:
http://www.covenant31.com/
, Twitter , https://www.facebook.com/Covenant31
, http://www.youtube.com/covenant31band
,
Q - Are there any other
social media locations that they should check out?
A - You
covered them looks like! :)
Q – Finally, are there
any new projects in the works for Covenant 31, or any special sneak previews as
to what’s next for the band?
A - Yes. The
next project is a hymns album - we are working on that one right now and looks
like we will be making another trip to see Ed and Scott Cash soon! Praise God!
We are Looking forward to it!
Q – Does the band have
any closing thoughts for your audience, new listeners and the readers?
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| Purchase Covenant31's Music on iTunes! |
A- Sure
do! - know that you are loved by God!
with a Love beyond compare in Jesus!
and come be
our friend on facebook! and Twitter. We
can keep up with each other there. And come check our website http://covenant31.com/ for a bunch of other
cool stuff!
In the
meantime! God Bless you all in Jesus Name!
Thanks to Covenant 31
for the interview.
Album Art and photos provided by Patrick Eddolls on behalf of Covenant31
And this has been your Artist Exclusive 1-on-1 with BlogTraveler Deb and Covenant31!
Tune in next time on this same Blog Page for something else! Very awesome I’m sure!
Chatta’ Latta!
BlogTraveler Deb
Tune in next time on this same Blog Page for something else! Very awesome I’m sure!
Chatta’ Latta!
BlogTraveler Deb
Deborah Ruth Dickson. Hence, the "dr" in @drdickson1 is on Twitter! "BlogTraveler Deb" has done interviews with independent Christian artists, authors
and screen writers for her blog. She also spends her free time perfecting her
unpublished Christian-genre lifestyle books, novels & screenplays. www.deborahruthdicksonwrites.blogspot.com
Artists include:Screenwriter/Director Susan Shearer, Playwright/Author Angela Bertone, Author Ann Gabhart, Musician Bryan Duncan, Musician Mali Korsten, Musician Dan Macaulay, Film Maker Christopher ShawnShaw, Musician John Tibbs, Band Fourfold, Musician Jerry T-Wack and more in the works!
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