Hostage (Rez Band album)

Last updated

Hostage
REZ-Hostage.jpg
Studio album by Rez Band
Released 1984
Recorded 1984
Studio Tone Zone Studios, Chicago, Illinois
Genre Christian rock
Length40:37
Label Sparrow
Producer Rez Band
Rez Band chronology
The Best of REZ: Music to Raise the Dead
(1984)		Hostage
(1984)		 Between Heaven 'n Hell
(1985)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]

Hostage is the sixth studio album, from American Christian rock band Resurrection Band (known at this time as "Rez Band"), released in late 1984.

Album collection of recorded music, words, sounds

An album is a collection of audio recordings issued as a collection on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium. Albums of recorded music were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78-rpm records collected in a bound book resembling a photograph album; this format evolved after 1948 into single vinyl LP records played at ​33 1⁄3 rpm. Vinyl LPs are still issued, though album sales in the 21st-century have mostly focused on CD and MP3 formats. The audio cassette was a format used alongside vinyl from the 1970s into the first decade of the 2000s.

Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus, typically performed by self-proclaimed Christian individuals. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Christian varies between bands. Many bands who perform Christian rock have ties to the contemporary Christian music labels, media outlets, and festivals, while other bands are independent.

Resurrection Band American Christian rock band

Resurrection Band, also known as Rez Band or REZ, was a Christian rock band formed in 1972. They were part of the Jesus People USA Christian community in Chicago and most of its members have continued in that community to this day. Known for their blend of blues-rock and hard rock, Resurrection Band is credited as one of the forerunners of the Christian metal genre. Christianity Today called them "the most influential band in Christian music history." Following their debut in 1978, the band's greatest popularity was during the early 1980s, but later in the decade they received some crossover success when they had two music videos featured on MTV.

Contents

Recording history

Hostage was a radical departure into keyboard-driven new wave stylings which dominate the record, and this is due in large part to the fact that bassist and keyboardist Jim Denton took over much of the songwriting. [2] [3] Although the lead-off track, "S.O.S.", was popular on Christian radio, [2] long-time Rez Band fans were extremely divided over the band's new musical direction, especially with strange sonic experiments like "Armageddon Appetite".

New wave is a genre of rock music popular in the late 1970s and the 1980s with ties to mid-1970s punk rock. New wave moved away from blues and rock and roll sounds to create rock music or pop music (later) that incorporated disco, mod, and electronic music. Initially new wave was similar to punk rock, before becoming a distinct genre. It subsequently engendered subgenres and fusions, including synth-pop.

At the same time, "Attention" and "Crimes" are typical Rez Band hard rock efforts, which indicated to surprised listeners at the time that the band hadn't completely abandoned the sound for which they had become known. Besides, the lyrical themes of war, inner-city violence (of which the band was intimately familiar) and the spiritual and moral confusion of youth are once again front and center. [3]

"Crimes" was the band's first music video and was filmed in the same run-down urban neighborhood in which the Jesus People USA community is located. It received limited airplay on MTV. [2]

A music video is a short film that integrates a song with imagery, and is produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings. There are also cases where songs are used in tie-in marketing campaigns that allow them to become more than just a song. Tie-ins and merchandising can be used for toys or for food or other products. Although the origins of the music video date back to musical short films that first appeared in the 1920s, they again came into prominence in the 1980s when the channel MTV based their format around the medium. Prior to the 1980s, these kinds of videos were described by various terms including "illustrated song", "filmed insert", "promotional (promo) film", "promotional clip", "promotional video", "song video", "song clip" or "film clip".

Jesus People USA

Jesus People USA (JPUSA) pronounced: ǰ-pu-sa is a Christian intentional community that has fluctuated in size throughout the years in Uptown, on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1972, coming out of Jesus People Milwaukee during the Jesus movement, it is one of the largest continuing communities. In 1989, JPUSA joined the Evangelical Covenant Church as a member congregation, and currently has eight pastors credentialed with the ECC. The community organized the annual Cornerstone Festival from 1984 until 2012.

MTV American pay television channel

MTV is an American pay television channel owned by Viacom Media Networks and headquartered in New York City. The channel was launched on August 1, 1981, and originally aired music videos as guided by television personalities known as "video jockeys" (VJs). At first, MTV's main target demographic was young adults, but today it is primarily teenagers, particularly high school and college students.

Track listing

All songs written by Jim Denton unless otherwise noted

  1. "S.O.S." – 4:03
  2. "Attention" (Glenn Kaiser, Jon Trott, Roy Montroy, Stu Heiss) – 3:45
  3. "Souls for Hire" (Kaiser) – 3:30
  4. "Defective Youth" (Denton, John Herrin, Trott, Heiss) – 2:57
  5. "Who's Real Anymore" – 4:06
  6. "Armageddon Appetite" – 1:26
  7. "Beyond the Gun" (Kaiser, Denton) – 4:20
  8. "Crimes" (Kaiser, Denton, Herrin, Montroy, Heiss) – 3:38
  9. "It's You" (Trott) – 2:02
  10. "Tears in the Rain" (Denton, Herrin, Trott, Heiss) – 6:00
  11. "Walk Away" (Kaiser, Denton) – 4:50

Personnel

Glenn Kaiser Blues musician, singer-songwriter, pastor

Glenn Kaiser is a Chicago-based Christian blues musician, singer, songwriter and pastor. He was the leader of Resurrection Band and is currently the leader of The Glenn Kaiser Band.

Production

Audio engineer engineer who operates recording, mixing, sound reproduction equipment

An audio engineer helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, and reinforcement of sound. Audio engineers work on the "...technical aspect of recording—the placing of microphones, pre-amp knobs, the setting of levels. The physical recording of any project is done by an engineer ... the nuts and bolts." It's a creative hobby and profession where musical instruments and technology are used to produce sound for film, radio, television, music, and video games. Audio engineers also set up, sound check and do live sound mixing using a mixing console and a sound reinforcement system for music concerts, theatre, sports games and corporate events.

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References

  1. ↑ Hostage at AllMusic
  2. 1 2 3 Powell, Mark Allan (2002). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers. p. 755. ISBN   1-56563-679-1.
  3. 1 2 "55. Rez Band: Hostage". The One Hundred. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
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