The Coming Up To Breathe Tour!

Hey guys!
There is some very exciting news in the world of music. MercyMe, Audio Adrenaline and Aaron Schust will be playing a concert at the Desoto Civic Center on April 22nd, at 7:00 PM.
This will be one of your last chances to see Audio Adrenaline before they say Adios!
I have seen MercyMe live before, and have their new CD and let me tell you, this will be one awesome show.
I will be working there, probably with stage setup and takedown, and get a free seat because of it. Check in after the concert for pictures. (unless I am somehow too busy!)
Signing out!

Will Tell at the Dixie!

Wow,
today was one of the coolest days that Will Tell has ever had. We played at the Dixie, a performing arts center in Huntington, to a sold out crowd. The show was broadcast live on the radio and recorded for later airing on PBS.Also, the line up was pretty impressive. The finals for "Farmerican Idol" was today, plus we had singer Teresa Wade from Nashville, and the Renaissance Bluegrass Group from Bethel College.

We got to hang out with the headliner, Ryan Holladay, and his band. The guy is 14 and has appeared on Oprah, played the Grand Ole Opry many times, and has already played Carnegie Hall. He opened for Nickel Creek and is currently signed on with Ricky Skagg's record label. Oh, and he is the two time National Banjo and Mandolin champion. Cool huh? It gets better. Will Tell was invited to his house to jam sometime. We talked a little and both expressed interest in going to Ireland on tour. I wonder if that will work out.Anyway, it has a been a very tiring, yet musically amazing day.
Until next time,
The Buckland Fiddler

CD review: Relient K- Five Score and Seven Years

Hello and welcome back to Off-beat music news. Today I will be reviewing Relient K's latest, Five Score and Seven Years, from Gotee Records.

First off, the name for this is really intriguingly clever. The band has been together for seven years and this is their fifth full length CD. Get it?

Now, for the music....

This CD is Relient K at their finest. From the opening acapella track "Plead the Fifth" to the closing strains of their 11 minute long epic "Deathbed" (featuring a cameo from Switchfoot frontman Jon Foreman), this CD continues to redefine the band.

I was impressed at the way that lead singer Matt Thiessen still writes clever, witty and touching lyrics. He is at his best on this CD. Also, the band's sound has matured, featuring almost none of the Punk-Rock that first put Relient K on the map. This time around, the band features two new members, adding a harder, darker rock edge to the sound. It all comes together for a sound that at times is more reminisent of The Beach Boys or Anberlin, than the punk rock sound that we have come to expect. I think we all new this was coming, especially with the last albums shift in sound.

All together, I give this CD a perfect 5 out of 5 stars. Check it out. This CD makes one wonderful addition to your music collection.

Off-beat news will return!

Hey guys!
Just to let you know, this site is taking a short Spring Break, as is our sister site Bilbo's Red Book. We will return at the beginning of next week with all new posts, so stay tuned for more!
Thanks for reading!
The Buckland Fiddler

CD review: tobyMac- Portable Sounds

Hello everyone and welcome to Off-beat news.

This week I will be reviewing the latest from Christian recording artist tobyMac.

His latest is CD is titled Portable Sounds, and is appropriate, as the songs make you want to carry the music around with you at all times.

Right off the bat we are treated to a familiar toby sound in "One World". Part "Hey Now" from the Diverse City record with some new elements incorporated, this track is a great way to start the CD. Immnediately following is the made-for-radio hit-"Made to Love". While obvioulsy t-mac, it still indicates a slightly more pop sound that he has been going lately. Other tracks on the CD with more of a vocal style include "I'm For You" (which is amazing), and "All In". "Boomin", "No Ordinairy Love", and "Feelin' So Fly" go back to the hip-hop that defines Toby's roots while "Ignition" and "Suddenly" sound like alternative rock songs. (Think "Supernatural" era dctalk). A calypso sounding "No Signal" and the powerful and soulful "Lose My Soul" (Featuring Kirk Franklin and Mandisa, of American Idol fame), end the record- automatically making you skip back to the first track to hear it all again.

My two cents:

I think that Toby has once again struck gold. No, he doesn't do anything particularly Grammy worthy here, but he shows his song writing and producing skills by the clever orchestrations and effects featured on this CD. Even though we have more sung songs, rather than the spoken-rapped sound featured in his previous works, the beats and instruments more than make you forget about it- it makes you not care about it. This CD is a new direction for tobyMac, and is frankly a direction that we will be seeing more of. Final word-Go buy it, now.

I give this CD 5 out of 5 stars.

Will Tell rocks the house

Hello and welcome to the all new blog Off beat.
As time goes on I will offer news in the world of music, plus exclusive pictures and articles about my Celtic Newgrass band Will Tell.

We recently had a CD release party in Jackson TN at the Vann Drive Chik-fil-a. We had a great turn out when we played. We performed on and off from 2-4, signing autographs in between the sections.

Next weekend we will have a release party at the Fiddler's Green on Poplar near Malco Paradiso movie theater. That will be from 3-5.

Our show at the Ruffin Theater this month was a success. We had about 175 people turn out, and a fun and enjoyable evening of high energy progressive newgrass music, plus we hung out at the local Coffee Lounge afterwards.

Stay in tune for more on Will Tell!