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Disciple - Interview Kevin Young

...And The Scars Still Remain

 

SEVEN ALBUMS DOWN AND CHRISTIAN ROCKERS DISICPLE SHOW NO SIGNS OF SLOWING DOWN. MATT REWINSKI CAUGHT UP WITH FRONTMAN KEVIN YOUNG TO FIND OUT WHAT DRIVES THE BAND AFTER ALL THIS TIME.

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March 2007

First of all, how are you guys?  How’s life on the road treating you? We’re good.  Life on the road is definitely not normal, but it’s what we were meant to do, so it’s all good.

I understand you guys are on a headlining tour with Decyfer Down, Fireflight, and Family Force 5.  How have the shows been going?  The shows have been amazing.  We have been pleasantly surprised by the turnouts at these shows, and it has truly been an honor to have all those guys (and two girls from Fireflight) out on the road with us. Have fans pretty much reacted well to such a varied bill?  I mean, Family Force 5 especially is really different from Decyfer Down, who have their own flavor compared to Fireflight, etc…how have the crowds liked it? From what i can tell the crowds are really loving it.  It seems that some people show up being a big fan of one band in particular and leave being a fan of all the bands. What’s your live set list like these days?  Is it mostly newer stuff, or do you throw a few vintage Disciple tunes in for the longtime fans? Well… I can tell you exactly what our set is right now…. And yes we have decided to throw some old songs into mix, which has been a lot of fun.  Here’s the list; Regime change, rise up, back again, game on, go ahead, scars remain, someone, after the world, shine down, fight for love, medley (big bad wolf, furthermore, byGod, God of Elijah, and I just know), into black, and the wait is over.

Standing tall

How have your onstage performances changed since you put down the bass and you guys hired Joey Fife?  Do you find it helps your onstage dynamics? Absolutely.  It has really helped me be more involved with the crowd, and get them to do more stuff.  Joey is very energetic and loves to get the crowd involved as well so it works out pretty good.   Let’s talk about the new album, Scars Remain, a little bit.  Going into the studio, you had to be aware that Disciple was your most commercially successful record yet, what were your initial thoughts on how Scars Remain would turn out? Well, we never want to put out the same record twice.  Some bands write hit songs and then try to write the same song over again.  We have been guilty of that in the past and really tried to just write something new and original.  We felt like we wanted Scars Remain to be a little heavier with some more energy and I think we accomplished that.   How was it working with Travis Wyrick?  What kind of input does he have in the whole songwriting process? Travis is the only producer we have ever worked with, so we love the relationship that we have developed over the years with him.   He has a lot of input on the song writing process.  We treat him as the 5th member of Disciple, and give him the freedom to write and change whatever he feels necessary.

Kevin trades his bass in for a mic stand

What were your goals for Scars Remain, as an album?  Were you guys trying to take your sound in a different direction again, or to expand on what you started with Disciple? We just try to write good songs.  There is always something that the record label wants to accomplish. So we try to meet in the middle with them, and stay true to ourselves all at the same time.  There was never any direction that we were going for except that we definitely wanted a heavier edge this time around. Kevin, what made you decide to switch to a more melodic vocal approach on Scars Remain and Disciple, as opposed to the more raw delivery you used on albums like Back Again? I think the Sevendust Seasons album was probably the biggest influence on that.  I really loved the way that Sevendust would have catchy “singy” choruses while maintaining their heavy sound, and I felt like that was something that we could pull off.

Since then, people have actually said to me “I didn’t even know that you could sing.”  That always makes me laugh.

From what you’ve experienced, how have fans received the new album?  Have you found that newer fans have different reactions than fans that have been with you for more than a year or two? Well it’s very interesting.  Radio really loved the last album.  This album (so far) is getting just a little less response from the radio stations.  But the album is actually selling more than the last one.  That just tells me that our fans like Scars Remain more even if some of the radio stations aren’t playing it as much. Did you guys feel rushed making the album?  I mean, Disciple was released in June of ’05, and Scars Remain was released just barely a year later, not to mention you guys toured pretty hardcore in between! Yeah, I honestly felt a little rushed.  I definitely wish we had more time, but I am in no way unhappy with the final product of Scars Remain.  Everybody just did a great job with their particular roles in making the album.  So I am very happy with it. Kev, your lyrics have always been intensely personal, but generally very uplifting and firmly based in Scripture, and the new album definitely maintains that approach.  Do you feel a call to take that sort of approach, like that’s what you’ve been called to do as a lyricist? I’m not afraid of writing about anything.  I feel that I have to stay true to myself and write things that are genuinely from my heart.  But I do have a strong belief that there is “power” in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  And I really hope that our lyrics point people to

the bible and at the very least make people curious to find out more about what the bible says.

If I can shift the conversation again, what’s your opinion on the Christian rock scene in general these days?  What are some good or bad things the scene has going for it right now? I am really pleased with where it is at right now.  No offence to the bands in the mid to late 90’s but that was just a horrible time in Christian rock music.  There were a couple of good bands out there, but you had to look really hard to find them.  Right now is a different story.  The bands on our tour right now are perfect example.  There are a lot of quality bands out there that I enjoy, and I am honoured to be a part this community of Christian bands. What are a couple bands you guys are digging right now?  Anyone in particular that’s got you really excited or that you’d really like to tour with? I think we all have a great deal of respect for Killswitch Engage and we do double back flips at the opportunity to work with those guys.

If you could play a show with any band (or bands), past or present, still together or broken up, Christian or secular, who would it be and why? U2 and do I even need to explain why? Do you guys spend much time in Knoxville anymore? No.
	Kevin (not in Knoxville)

How do you feel about touring with secular bands? I’m open to playing wherever.  Music is art.  Artists express themselves through whatever art they create, and we express ourselves through our songs.  I think there is a lot of good art out there (movies for example) that aren’t Christian and I am very open minded about that possibility.
	We'll tour with anyone.

Let’s be honest, what’s your favorite city to play, and why?  Dallas.  They have a great radio station and the fans are really fun to play in front of in that town.   I have to mention some other awesome cities as well Minneapolis, Albuquerque, Wichita, Greenville, and Columbus.  What are your plans for the rest of ’07, once the Scars Remain tour finishes up? Going to the chiropractor.           AND FINALLY, ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD Thanks for the interview.  God bless you and what you’re doing. Kevin      THANKS TO KEVIN FOR TALKING WITH SAVIOURS OF ROCK. HE'S A GREAT GUY AND WE WISH HIM ALL THE BEST FOR THE FUTURE. GO CHECK HIM OUT AT http://www.disciplerocks.com/   Matt rewinski

'....this ones for Saviours Of Rock!'

 

 

 

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