Today (33Miles album)
Encyclopedia
Today is the third studio album from contemporary Christian
band 33Miles
, released on October 5, 2010 through INO Records
.
(Stellar Kart
, Francesca Battistelli
, Starfield) and Nathan Nockels (Passion, Point of Grace
, Watermark), Today, which was released October 5 on INO Records
, features 10 pop progressive, church-accessible songs to remind us that we are meant for more than life on autopilot.
“One Life
was such a broad stroke, obviously one that touched people, but we wanted to narrow that down to our everyday reality,” Jason says. “So it came down to, ‘What are we doing to live for Christ today, to make a difference?’ A lot of people live for the future, and a lot of people live in the past, but very few people tend to look at their lives and think about what life can be like right now.”
That message had been immanent for the Dove-nominated group over the past few months, as one of their original members, keyboardist Collin Stoddard, followed God’s calling into worship ministry full time. “For five years, it’s just been the three of us,” says Chris. “But I think God had been preparing Collin’s heart, just as he’d been preparing us. As his heart was headed elsewhere, our sound began to change.”
If you listen closely, you’ll hear influences well beyond the Rascal Flatts
stereotype applied to 33Miles
in days past, a wall of sound reminiscent of artists like Coldplay
, Train
and OneRepublic
. But that wall never overshadows the message.
“Musically, we may be pushing the envelope in terms of what might be expected,” Jason says, “I think there’s a good balance of what we know works. We didn’t reinvent the wheel here. The classic sounds are still there, the harmonies, and the lyrical content is still strong and clear. But it’s definitely a step forward.”
For example, “Live,” a song Jason wrote for his sister, boldly declares: You’re worth enough that he died for you / His heart burns with love and desire for you / Don’t be afraid to receive / Don’t be afraid to believe that you can live... live!
“My sister is a school teacher,” he says. “She lives in our hometown, and is just one of the most beautiful people in the world, with such a big heart. But over the last five years, she’s started to lose her enthusiasm for life. She’s been in and out of bad relationships, and somehow she just got caught up in the lie that she’s alone in all this, she began to give up. I wrote this song for her to say, ‘This is not what you were created for! You were created to live!’ That is the message Jesus died to deliver: God wants us to live life to the fullest.”
“No Greater Love,” holds a special place in Chris’ heart, in part because it moved him more than any song in recent memory. “The cross is at the heart of Christianity, so it saddens me that there are so few songs about the cross. I didn’t really pursue this song; it pursued me. Every time I tried to put it aside, I couldn’t let it go. Just trying to picture myself there, watching the torture of our Lord, brought me to my knees to ask, Who am I that you would come and die / I don’t understand / Why the God of all the universe would become a man / to redeem the mess that I have made, take away the shame of what I’ve done / There is no greater love...
“Hold Me Up,” is a powerful reminder that Christians aren’t expected to have it all together. Our strength comes in learning to rest in God’s hands. “I don’t need to wait until I’m on the floor falling apart to let him have it,” Jason says of the message. “There will be times when circumstances beyond our control hit and knock us to the ground, but if we allow God to hold us up, we can get through.”
Perhaps as much as any song on Today, “Where I Wanna Go,” the first single released in August 2010 to a wide reception on Christian radio
, carries the message of the entire collection, challenging believers ‘to live like the future resident of heaven you will become,’ as one of Jason’s friend’s recently posted on Twitter
.
launched "The Today Tour" tour in September, with special guests Chris and Conrad
and JJ Heller.
Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
band 33Miles
33Miles
33Miles is a contemporary Christian band with country music influences from Franklin, Tennessee. They began playing in Nashville and signed to INO Records, who released the band's debut album, 33Miles, in 2007. The album peaked at #8 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers albums chart and #16 on its Top...
, released on October 5, 2010 through INO Records
INO Records
INO Records, also known as Fair Trade Services, is an American record label based in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, specializing in Contemporary Christian music . It is distributed through Sony Music Entertainment, and was owned by Integrity Media until June 2011. When Integrity Media sold its assets...
.
History
Produced by Ian EskelinIan Eskelin
Ian Eskelin , is a record producer, songwriter, solo artist, and founding member and lead singer of the Grammy-nominated Christian rock band All Star United. He won the Dove Award for "Producer of the Year" in 2011 and 2008, and was nominated for the same award in 2007, 2009, and 2010...
(Stellar Kart
Stellar Kart
Stellar Kart is a Christian pop punk band from Phoenix, Arizona, USA . The band is signed to INO Records and released its first album in February 2005. Some of the singles from their debut album, All Gas. No Brake - including "Finish Last" and "Life Is Good" - have been played on Christian radio...
, Francesca Battistelli
Francesca Battistelli
Francesca Battistelli is an American Christian musician from New York City, New York. She was originally an independent artist and had released an independent album, Just a Breath, in 2004. Her first studio album on Fervent Records, My Paper Heart, was released on July 22, 2008...
, Starfield) and Nathan Nockels (Passion, Point of Grace
Point of Grace
Point of Grace is an all-female Contemporary Christian music group. The trio consists of Shelley Breen, Denise Jones, and Leigh Cappillino. The group started out as a quartet in 1991, with original members Breen and Jones, as well as Terry Jones and Heather Payne...
, Watermark), Today, which was released October 5 on INO Records
INO Records
INO Records, also known as Fair Trade Services, is an American record label based in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, specializing in Contemporary Christian music . It is distributed through Sony Music Entertainment, and was owned by Integrity Media until June 2011. When Integrity Media sold its assets...
, features 10 pop progressive, church-accessible songs to remind us that we are meant for more than life on autopilot.
“One Life
One Life
"One Life" is a song and single by The Pillows released in 1997 by King Records. The song was re-recorded as a different version for their 1998 release Little Busters, as with the B-side "Like a Lovesong ". The B-side "Stalker Goes to Babylon" is a techno-like remix of their song "Stalker" from...
was such a broad stroke, obviously one that touched people, but we wanted to narrow that down to our everyday reality,” Jason says. “So it came down to, ‘What are we doing to live for Christ today, to make a difference?’ A lot of people live for the future, and a lot of people live in the past, but very few people tend to look at their lives and think about what life can be like right now.”
That message had been immanent for the Dove-nominated group over the past few months, as one of their original members, keyboardist Collin Stoddard, followed God’s calling into worship ministry full time. “For five years, it’s just been the three of us,” says Chris. “But I think God had been preparing Collin’s heart, just as he’d been preparing us. As his heart was headed elsewhere, our sound began to change.”
If you listen closely, you’ll hear influences well beyond the Rascal Flatts
Rascal Flatts
Rascal Flatts is an American country music band that originated in Columbus, Ohio, United States of America. Since its inception, Rascal Flatts has been composed of three members: Gary LeVox , Jay DeMarcus and Joe Don Rooney...
stereotype applied to 33Miles
33Miles
33Miles is a contemporary Christian band with country music influences from Franklin, Tennessee. They began playing in Nashville and signed to INO Records, who released the band's debut album, 33Miles, in 2007. The album peaked at #8 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers albums chart and #16 on its Top...
in days past, a wall of sound reminiscent of artists like Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, Train
Train (band)
Train is an American pop rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1994. The band currently comprises a core trio of Patrick Monahan , Jimmy Stafford and Scott Underwood ....
and OneRepublic
OneRepublic
OneRepublic is an American pop rock band from Colorado Springs, Colorado. Formed in 2002 by Ryan Tedder and Zach Filkins, the band achieved massive success on MySpace, becoming the most prominent unsigned act on the website then...
. But that wall never overshadows the message.
“Musically, we may be pushing the envelope in terms of what might be expected,” Jason says, “I think there’s a good balance of what we know works. We didn’t reinvent the wheel here. The classic sounds are still there, the harmonies, and the lyrical content is still strong and clear. But it’s definitely a step forward.”
Track listing
- "What Grace Looks Like" - 3:09
- "Hold Me Up" - 3:55
- "Where I Wanna Go" - 3:31
- "Live" - 3:34
- "No Greater Love" - 3:29
- "Call My Name" - 3:05
- "Today" - 3:18
- "Underneath" - 3:17
- "Arms That Hold The Universe" - 4:09
- "Worth The Wait" - 3:31
Track Histories
From the vibey fun opener “What Grace Looks Like,” to the soaring first single, “Where I Wanna Go,” an 11th hour selection that seemed to add the missing exclamation point to the entire CD, to the powerful benediction of “Worth the Wait,” Today features some of the group’s most personal songwriting to date.For example, “Live,” a song Jason wrote for his sister, boldly declares: You’re worth enough that he died for you / His heart burns with love and desire for you / Don’t be afraid to receive / Don’t be afraid to believe that you can live... live!
“My sister is a school teacher,” he says. “She lives in our hometown, and is just one of the most beautiful people in the world, with such a big heart. But over the last five years, she’s started to lose her enthusiasm for life. She’s been in and out of bad relationships, and somehow she just got caught up in the lie that she’s alone in all this, she began to give up. I wrote this song for her to say, ‘This is not what you were created for! You were created to live!’ That is the message Jesus died to deliver: God wants us to live life to the fullest.”
“No Greater Love,” holds a special place in Chris’ heart, in part because it moved him more than any song in recent memory. “The cross is at the heart of Christianity, so it saddens me that there are so few songs about the cross. I didn’t really pursue this song; it pursued me. Every time I tried to put it aside, I couldn’t let it go. Just trying to picture myself there, watching the torture of our Lord, brought me to my knees to ask, Who am I that you would come and die / I don’t understand / Why the God of all the universe would become a man / to redeem the mess that I have made, take away the shame of what I’ve done / There is no greater love...
“Hold Me Up,” is a powerful reminder that Christians aren’t expected to have it all together. Our strength comes in learning to rest in God’s hands. “I don’t need to wait until I’m on the floor falling apart to let him have it,” Jason says of the message. “There will be times when circumstances beyond our control hit and knock us to the ground, but if we allow God to hold us up, we can get through.”
Perhaps as much as any song on Today, “Where I Wanna Go,” the first single released in August 2010 to a wide reception on Christian radio
Christian radio
Christian radio is a category of radio formats that focus on transmitting programming with a Christian message. In the United States, where it is more established, many such broadcasters play popular music of Christian influence, though many programs have talk or news programming covering...
, carries the message of the entire collection, challenging believers ‘to live like the future resident of heaven you will become,’ as one of Jason’s friend’s recently posted on Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
.
"The Today Tour"
33Miles33Miles
33Miles is a contemporary Christian band with country music influences from Franklin, Tennessee. They began playing in Nashville and signed to INO Records, who released the band's debut album, 33Miles, in 2007. The album peaked at #8 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers albums chart and #16 on its Top...
launched "The Today Tour" tour in September, with special guests Chris and Conrad
Chris and Conrad
Chris and Conrad are an American contemporary Christian music duo from Lakeland, Florida, consisting of Chris Kuti and Conrad Johnson. In early 2009 the duo was named the "#2 Artist You Oughta Know" by CCM Magazine. "Lead Me to the Cross", a radio version of the worship song written by Brooke...
and JJ Heller.