Sonicflood

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Biography

Sonicflood (sometimes stylized as SONICFLOOd ) is an American Christian Worship band from Nashville, Tennessee . Originally under the name Zilch, the band formed in 1997. The group took the name Sonicflood in 1998 as they became known as a praise and worship band following some line-up changes. The name Sonicflood is a reference to a line in the Book of Revelation , chapter 19, verse 6.

Sonicflood is known for producing modern praise and worship music . They released their debut album at a time when such music was gaining commercial success in the Christian music industry . Their success in turn fed the genre, expanding its appeal.

Since their debut Sonicflood has sold almost two million records, and produced top worship hits (often as cover song|covers ) including " I Could Sing of Your Love Forever ", "Resonate", "Cry Holy" and "Here I am to Worship". In the early years of their existence, the group earned two Dove awards and three further nominations, and one Grammy nomination. Additionally, their eponymous debut took Gold status, and spawned several No. 1 hits on Christian radio.

Sonicflood's line-up has changed significantly from its original band, partially due to disagreements over the artistic direction that they should take. These conflicts eventually left the band with no founding members. With Rick Heil at the helm since 2000, the band has continued to release albums and tour internationally.

History

As Zilch

Zilch began as dc Talk 's traveling band, forming into an independent act in 1997. The initial recording lineup was lead singer and guitarist Mark Lee Townsend , keyboardist Jason Halbert, and bassist Otto Price. Zilch released its first album, Platinum , in 1997 on Gotee Records but received little publicity. Platinum featured a modern rock sound with clear influences from 1960s pop music. One review cited the sound as being similar to that of All Star United , and another to Weezer plus pop and hip-hop influences.

This release was not praise and worship music, which the band would soon become known for, but contained more standard fare, including songs on topics like friendship, Sunday Christian|complacency , and priorities. Overall, the band was characterized as not taking themselves seriously, for instance by including a cover of the Schoolhouse Rock! song " List of songs from Schoolhouse Rock|My Hero, Zero ", and reflected in the band's name, which was taken from the song by Headquarters (album)|the same name written by The Monkees . Likewise, the title of the album was a play on their own status as musicians. "We're appointing ourselves superstars with a ' Music recording sales certification|Platinum ' album..." Jason Halbert told one reporter, "That basically means wiktionary:zilch|Zilch !," Their song "In The Sky" is an answer to two hits at the time, Joan Osbourne " One of Us (Joan Osborne song)|One of Us " and Dishwalla " Counting Blue Cars ", opening with the line, "... she asked if God was just a slob like us, well maybe something there is lacking," the second verse begins with, "Let me tell you all my thoughts on God, cause I just met with Him this morning..."

In early 1998 Mark Lee Townsend stepped down from the role of lead singer and was replaced by then-independent artist Jeff Deyo . Zilch would play shows, sometimes ending them with a praise song such as " Lord, I Lift Your Name on High ." The band found that playing such music changed the nature of audience interaction with their performance, in positive ways.

Formation of Sonicflood

Their label took notice as well, and eventually suggested that the band consider recording a full-length contemporary worship music|praise and worship album. This idea was initially met with resistance from the band, which was already in the process of recording a second album under the title Millennium . Eventually, the band agreed to do a praise and worship as a wiktionary:one-off|one-off , with no intention of continuing beyond the single album. However, as the recording progressed, the band decided to commit to the project. Jeff Deyo characterized the band's name change as a sign of that commitment, saying that is was similar to the story of the Conversion to Christianity|conversion of Paul of Tarsus .

Sonicflood began rotating personnel making changes that would heavily impact the future of the band. Otto Price played bass, co-produced, and shared some writing credits on the album, but not wanting to continue touring, dropped out of the core band. Price would eventually take the spot of vice president of A& R at Word Records . Mark Lee Townsend did similarly, and was listed on Sonicflood as an additional musician. Already an industry veteran, he went on to produce albums for The OC Supertones and Relient K , among others. Additionally, he intended to release a second project under the name Zilch. However, despite occasional status updates throughout the 00s, that album is yet vaporware|unreleased .

Seven Day Jesus guitarist Dwayne Larring and drummer Aaron Blanton became members of the band, bringing their number to four. The original lineup, under which the album Sonicflood was recorded consisted of Deyo, Halbert, Blanton, and Larring. Rick Heil, then Big Tent Revival bass player, took the bassist slot in early 1999 before Sonicflood began touring, but did not appear on the album in any capacity.

Sonicflood and Sonicpraise

Sonicflood released Sonicflood (album)|its debut album in February 1999. With this release, the band became one of many bands in the burgeoning genre of praise and worship music , joining Delirious? , Hillsong Music Australia|Hillsong , Matt Redman , and others at a time when the genre was a fast growing part of the Christian music industry . The album landed on Billboard charts including the Billboard 200, the top 10 Christian albums, and peaking at No. 2 on the Heatseekers Chart. The band would stay on the top 10 Christian album charts well into the year 2000 (for over 72 weeks), and becoming possibly the best known praise and worship band in America.

The release had two No. 1 hits on Christian radio, "I Want to Know You" (written by Andy Park (musician)|Andy Park ) and "I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever" (written by Martin Smith (songwriter)|Martin Smith of Delirious? ), and several lesser charting Radio single|singles . The latter was probably their most well known song, and would gain an additional Dove nomination the following year, in the "Song of the Year" category. The band garnered three GMA Music Awards|Dove Award nominations in 2000 and one win, for "Praise and Worship Album". In 1999 the band recorded a live album at the Flevo Festival but featuring content from other shows as well. Originally scheduled for a late 2000 release, changes in the band's structure would delay the album until 2001. .

In the fall of 1999 the band toured with speaker Josh McDowell . The following Spring Sonicflood joined the " Love Liberty Disco|Love Liberty Disco Tour ", headlined by the Newsboys . The band also recorded a track for the compilation album City on a Hill: Songs of Worship and Praise|City on a Hill with Peter Furler as lead vocalist. This release would take a Dove award for "Special Event Album" in 2001, although by that time the band would bear no resemblance to the one which recorded it.

Sonicflood dissolved throughout the year 2000, citing differences in over the vision of the band. Issues that led to the band dissolving included whether the band should return to a more conventional musical strain or continue making praise and worship music and how the band should sound. These were complicated by the fact that the band had no true leadership; the original arrangement was Stakeholder (corporate)|equal ownership for each member. In a Shareholder|corporate fashion , this meant that each one had equal say in the direction of the band.

Jeff Deyo resigned in May 2000 at the behest of the remaining members. In later interviews, he would state that he viewed what happened as himself having been laid off . Dean Rush, the lead singer of New Zealand worship band Form and who had previously played with the Newsboy's Phil Joel , was recruited as lead singer, but lasted only a short time. In the summer of 2000, various radio stations were sent a sneak preview CD of the live Sonicpraise concert recordings with Rush on lead vocals. Since this was a rough cut, these tracks received little if any airplay. This is a collector's item for those who can find it. By the fall of that year, all members except Heil had departed. During this period the disagreements between members cascaded into lawsuit|legal threats . It was reported that Larring and Blanton were pushed out under pressure directly from Heil. For his part, Heil denies using any form of legal action. Heil took the role of lead singer and began recruiting new members to fill the band's touring obligations.

This turmoil led to the delay of their live album because the now-departed members owned the name Sonicflood, which in turn prevented any publishing under it. By Spring of 2001 Sonicflood had gone RIAA certification|Gold and the legal complexities that surrounded the band's name and ownership had been resolved. Partial reprint: Sonicpraise , the live effort recorded in 1999, was finally released. Similar to their eponymous album, it featured a mix of songs from that Sonicflood and new cover song|covers written by other praise artists. This album earned a Grammy Award|Grammy nomination for "Best Gospel Rock Album", and landed the band on Billboard charts once again.

Jeff Deyo went on to sign with Gotee Records|Gotee , releasing a series of praise and worship albums under his own name. Aaron Blanton joined By the Tree , and remains with that band today. Halbert and Larring formed a production company, based in Los Angeles .

Gotee Records continues to release Sonicflood products from time to time. These albums include Gold (Sonicflood album)|Gold (a 2004 re-release of both Gotee albums with some bonus material), The Early Years in 2006 (which contains a mix of songs from the same,) and an installment in the Open Mic Karaoke|Open Mic Karaoke series.

Under Rick Heil

With Rick Heil at the helm, the band recruited Tom Michael, Todd Shay, and Brett Vargason, each of whom were members of the John Cox Band and David "Moose" Alan, who played keyboards for Big Tent Revival . The band switched record labels, leaving Gotee Records|Gotee and partnering with newly-formed INO Records . Heil began developing a praise and worship album, designing it similarly to the band's 1999 release, with a mix of covers and original songs. The result of these efforts became Resonate (album)|Resonate , released in the fall of 2001. Owing to the completely new lineup, the sound of Resonate deviates from that of Sonicflood . The album features a largely electronic sound which was cited as unpolished, like a debut record. Their 2003 release Cry Holy takes an acoustic rock sound, drawing comparisons to Chris Tomlin .

Following the 2005 release of This Generation , the band toured internationally, recording their performances along the way. While in Islam|Muslim -dominated Turkey the band filmed a music video for their song "This Generation". Sonicflood toured with sponsorship by Compassion International in the Spring of 2006, and continued to tour in Europe in the Summer. These recordings were released as Glimpse: Live Recordings From Around The World in fall 2006. As support for Glimpse , the band embarked on a United States tour, with sponsorship from the Southern Baptist Convention 's International Mission Board , and included missionaries as speakers.

In 2007 the band appeared on Trinity Broadcasting Network 's Praise the Lord to promote their appearance at an upcoming World Harvest Church -sponsored event. Bandleader Rick Heil would appear again the following year as well, in support of A Heart Like Yours , telling the story of his healing from Crohn's disease Heil contracted the disease at the age of 11, and was afflicted with it for 26 years. Heil's case was particularly bad and, he was told, Wiktionary:incurable|incurable , leaving his only hope for cure in miracle s. While Heil does not profess to have experienced a miracle Wiktionary:per se|per se , he does express that " Jesus Christ|Jesus is the great physician... the healer of the Heart (anthropology)|heart , the soul , the mind ."

A Heart Like Yours features a rock and piano-dominated sound. One critic labeled the release as having a "pseudo-worship/pop album" feel, and noted lyrics "which don't fit very well within the worship genre," at least on some songs.

In 2009, guitarist Phil Baquie received notice of his United States armed forces|military unit's activation, and orders to Military deployment|deploy to Afghanistan in October as part of Operation Enduring Freedom . Though not yet a United States nationality law|United States citizen , Baquie is in the Individual Ready Reserve|military reserve , which is a possible Citizenship_in_the_United_States#Pathways_to_citizenship|path to citizenship . Phil's final album appearance was on their 2009 Christmas album , When Love First Cried .

Discography

;as Zilch:

1997 - Platinum

;as Sonicflood:

1999 - Sonicflood (album)|Sonicflood

2001 - Sonicpraise - live

2001 - Resonate (album)|Resonate

2003 - Cry Holy

2004 - Gold (Sonicflood album)|Gold - best-of compilation

2005 - This Generation

2006 - The Early Years (Sonicflood album)|The Early Years - compilation

2006 - Glimpse: Live Recordings from Around the World|Glimpse - live

2008 - A Heart Like Yours

2009 - When Love First Cried (Christmas album)

Awards and nominations

2000 - GMA Music Awards|Dove Award for Praise and Worship Album: Sonicflood

2000 - Dove nomination for New Artist of the Year

2000 - Dove nomination for Rock Recorded Song Of The Year: "I Have Come to Worship"

2000 - Nashville Music Award nomination for Contemporary Christian Album: Sonicflood

2001 - Dove Award for Special Event of the Year: City on a Hill: Songs of Worship and Praise

2001 - Dove nomination for Song of the Year: "I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever"

2002 - Grammy Award|Grammy nomination for "Best Gospel Rock Album": Sonicpraise

Members

Current members

Rick Heil - Lead Vocals, Guitar (Formerly Bass of Big Tent Revival )

Branden Taulbee - Bass

Robert Gilliard - Keyboard

Ron Robinson - Guitar

Benjamin Hodge - Drums

Former members

; Lead vocals

Jeff Deyo (1999-2000)

Dean Rush (2000)

; Bass guitar

Otto Price (1998-1999)

Rick Heil (1999-2000) Switched to lead vocals exclusively.

Tom Michael (2000-2004)

Bryan Willard (2004-2005)

Grant Norsworthy (2005-2007)

; Drums

Aaron Blanton (1999-2000)

Brett Vargason (2000-2004)

Ben Showalter (2004-2005)

Chris Kimmerer (2006-2009)

Chris Knight (2009-2010)

; Keyboards

Jason Halbert (1999-2000)

David Alan (2000-2004) (also in Big Tent Revival )

McKendree Tucker (2008-2009)

; Guitar

Dwayne Larring (1999-2000)

Todd Shay (2000 - 2004)

Trey Hill (2004 - 2005)

Jordan Jameson (2004 - 2005)

Phil Baquie (2009-2010)

Copyright Citations

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1. Big Tent Revival 2. Building 429 3. Jeff Deyo 4. Kevin Max 5. Sonic Flood 6. Zilch 7. Paul Baloche 8. Capital Lights

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