Recently in Christian/Gospel Category

They've sold a million records and are 10-time Dove Award nominees. So what were the sisters best known as Barlow Girl doing the week before the release of their new album, Love & War? Babysitting. That's right, as they prepped for an appearance at Universal Studios' Rock the Universe and a fall tour with longtime friends Superchick, they spent a week looking after their brother's four children while he and his wife enjoyed a Hawaiian getaway. Fortunately, Rebecca, Lauren and Alyssa Barlow were able to take time out from their young charges long enough to talk to Rhapsody about the new record. And be sure to browse our Christian Music homepage, where you can find, listen, collect and share high-quality audio of all of your favorite Christian artist. Click here for your free trial membership!

With a new record and a national tour ahead of them, Philadelphia experimental rockers mewithoutYou are geared up to take the college indie scene by storm this summer. Their fourth release, It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All a Dream! It’s Alright, showcases lyricist Aaron Weiss’ softer side. The choral chants and Dylan-esque acoustic rhythms present an ideal backdrop for Weiss to channel God’s messages through his lyrics. Weiss stepped away from prepping the band’s eco-friendly tour bus and shared some words with me regarding his deep connection to God and what exactly defines his deeply spiritual lifestyle.

Debuting once again on the top 10 of the Billboard 200 with Lost in the Sound of Separation, Christian metal trailblazers Underoath have expanded upon their foundation and waged a sonic war on the lyrical search for self. With a darker, heavier record, the Adam D./Matt Goldman-produced album is a stylistic shift for the once-dubbed-screamo  Florida sextet. Rhapsody checked in with bassist Grant Brandell to learn about what went into the new record, and where these lost twentysomethings find themselves as a band in 2008.

by Jen Guyre

For Christian metalcore mainstays Norma Jean (vocalist Cory Brandan, guitarists Scottie Henry and Chris Day, bassist Jake Schultz and drummer Chris Raines), reinvention is not so much a planned process as it is a spontaneous one -- and some would say the key to survival in a scene currently overrun with mimicry. Their latest effort The Anti-Mother, featuring production by Ross Robinson  [Korn, Blood Brothers, At the Drive-In], songwriting by Chino Moreno of the Deftones, guest vocals from Cover Reber of Saosin and a collaboration with Page Hamilton of Helmet, shows the Atlanta-based band moving toward a mature sound and experimental vibe.

"We never really want to set a sound for ourselves [because] we never know what it’s gonna be like until we’re done – it just sort of happens," says Henry. Rhapsody caught up with Henry on the Warped Tour to find out more about what went into the making of the new album.

By Toshitaka Kondo

It takes grindin' to be king in the streets. That and a ruthless demeanor, top-notch instincts and zero qualms about using violence to get the job done. On HBO's "The Wire," Jamie Hector's deadly character Marlo Stanfield, the king of Baltimore's most dangerous drug cartel, possesses all of these traits. And while running the streets usually leads to jail time or an early grave, one gets the feeling this gangsta won't die -- he'll just move to Miami. Hector, a twenty-something Brooklyn native, had small roles in Clockers, Paid in Full and He Got Game before locking down the block as Marlo on "The Wire." He picked a playlist fit for the streets and Sunday service.

Rhapsody's 2007: The Year in Christian Music playlist headlined that CCM had grown three sizes this year. Now we bring you the rest of that story: an American "Idol"'s gospel debut, Christian acts rocking "Grey's Anatomy" and the House of Blues, plus heaps more. Read on for the top 10 moments in Christian/gospel music of 2007.