NASHVILLE TN. (www.thechoir.net) - Grammy Nominated and Dove Award winning veteran alternative band The Choir has released their eleventh studio album, O How the Mighty Have Fallen, to immediate acclaim from critics, industry veterans and die-hard fans. The independent release, produced by band member and award winning songwriter Marc Byrd, returns the band to their ambient, picturesque roots with all new songs that hearken back to their glory days and reference the members' recent success as writers and producers.
In a moment of clear non -rock-star candor founding member Derri Daugherty admits that emotions run high surrounding the release of this album. "I'm really proud of it," Daugherty admits. "It's hard for me to talk about it without gushing."
Daugherty and Steve Hindalong founded the band Youth Choir in 1981 as one of the early class of alternative Christian bands from southern California. Existing somewhere between the hinterlands of the underground Christian alternative scene, and the obscure corners of the mainstream music culture. Youth Choir, who eventually changed their name to The Choir, released genre-shaping albums that defined the very identity of the alternative Christian scene, while always looking for points of entry into the culture at large. After a series of critically acclaimed atmospheric and ambient albums on Myrrh / Word Records, their sound morphed into the edgier raw style of the 90s alternative era. But while their music served as an inspiration to countless young bands, (including Sixpence None The Richer, Jars of Clay and Switchfoot,) the rigors of touring had taken their toll and The Choir officially retired from the road in 1994.
Though no longer cruising the country in one of the six vans they wore out, the band was far from over. Daugherty and Hindalong moved from Orange County California to Nashville Tennessee and established themselves as leading producers, engineers and songwriters. Their series of modern-yet-classic worship albums At the Foot of the Cross are credited with sparking the "Modern Worship" phenomenon that still dominates the Christian music scene. After running their own label, Glasshouse Records, for several years with band member Dan Michaels, the crew moved into independent mode once again. Michaels entered the industry as an A&R Executive for Tattoo Records, and currently serves as the Vice President of Promotion and Marketing for INO Records (Mercy Me, Darlene Zschech, The Afters,) while Hindalong has become what CCM Magazine described as one of the five most influential producers in Nashville for his work on the ground breaking City On A Hill worship series, which also featured songwriting contributions by Daugherty ("Beautiful Scandalous Night,") and Byrd ("God Of Wonders.") Somehow in the midst of their new roles they managed to revisit The Choir as a studio project periodically, earning a Grammy Nomination for Best Rock Gospel Album in 2002 for their independently released Flap Your Wings set. But where most of their 90s era recordings existed as quick, low budget, and admittedly "fragmented" vamps, the band members decided to take an entirely different approach for their most recent studio album. "There comes a point with all of us where, after working on other people's music for so long, you have to do your own or you go crazy," Daugherty explains. "It just seemed like the right time."
With the City on a Hill series of four albums completed, and some precious time returned to their schedules, the band convened in early 2004 to dream up the concept and vision for the new album. Enlisting the production assistance of Marc Byrd, and setting up shop in a studio other than Daugherty's home setup, The Choir began writing for the new project with a clear vision from the beginning. The resulting work is already earning favorable comparisons to the bands seminal late 80s sets Circle Slide and Chase the Kangaroo, and the band couldn't be happier. "More than any of our other records this is one where we went in with a real distinct plan musically," Daugherty explains. We knew it would be more low-key, we knew the songs would be more mellow than before." Hindalong adds, "The only motivation is to do music that we feel good about. I'm very happy with how this record has turned out... very pleased."
Daugherty insists that O How the Mighty Have Fallen is actually one of the most inspiring projects in the band's resume. "To be able to keep playing music after 25 years, to still be able to wake up and play guitar is pretty humbling. Spiritually, you get up and take another breath and realize that even in our fallen state, God is still merciful enough to allow us to have some great things in life. To me that's the whole thing. The bottom line is that we are still very thankful for God's really great gift to us. More so than any of our records in the past, I think this one really means that to me."
O How the Mighty Have Fallen is being released exclusively through the band's website at www.TheChoir.net through the summer. Following rare live appearances at the internationally influential Cornerstone Festival (with Sixpence None the Richer's Matt Slocum on bass,) and in their former stomping grounds of Southern California the album will be made available to other on-line distributors and eventually brick and mortar retail.
The Choir is: Steve Hindalong Derri Daugherty Dan Michaels Tim Chandler Marc Byrd.
