Staff Favorites-Project 86, Maylene and the Sons of Disaster, Seventh Seal.

Here are a few of my current favorite bands.  They spread over several styles and genres, but I think that they all rock quite a bit.  So, without further ado:


Project 86 Lead Singer: Andrew Schwab, Guitarist: Randy Torres, Bassist: Stephen Dail
These guys are my number one pick, no contest.  There is so much to say about this band.  They started back in '96, so they've been around for a while and their music reflects that.  Their musical style has evolved over the years through rap-rock, hard rock, hardcore, metal, and pop rock.  Yet they have maintained a unified sound that has only gotten better.  These guys stick out to me for one reason more than any other: their lyrics.  Andrew Schwab is the main songwriter and the man is a poet.  Literally.  He's published several books, including poetry. I have called Project 86 a Christian Rage Against the Machine, not so much for their sound as for their content.  They aren't anti-establishment as much as anti-some establishments, but they definitely aren't afraid to take a dig at main forces in the culture, including the church, when it deserves it (and it does sometimes)  The words absolutely seethe with meaning and energy and cover the gambit of topics.  They talk about faith, hope, evil, the problems with our culture, relationships, and sorrow.  If I need to get fired up about something important, it's these guys that I turn to first.  Plus, Andrew Schwab has quite a lot of personality, so Project 86 is a live show worth seeing.

Here's a few of their songs, just to give you a taste.
The Spy Hunter

All of Me

Normandy

 

Maylene and the Sons of Disaster Lead Singer: Dallas Taylor, Guitarist: Chad Huff, Guitarist: Jake Duncan, Bassist: Brad Lehmann, Drummer: Matt Clark

And now for something completely different.  Dallas Taylor and Matt Clark, previously of Underoath (a Christian hardcore band, worth checking out) went out and formed Maylene.  The best way I can figure out how to describe this band is southern metal.  As far as I know, there's not a lot like it in existence.  The story behind the band name is pretty interesting.  You can read the full version on the band website, but basically the songs draw on the story of a family of criminals in the South and the justice that came their way.  I would suggest their album III as the most user-friendly to investigate.  The earlier ones have quite a bit of hardcore influence for most people.  

Here are two of my favorite of their songs:

Step Up (I'm On It)  This is a loose plot summary of the movie Deliverance

Listen Close

Seventh Seal

This is a very obscure Christian metal band that I found practically by accident while looking up iTunes recommendations one day.  They've only put out a handful of songs, but they're still working on more.  I think that one of the things I like about them is that they are so unheard of.  It gives me a chance to tell other people about them and feel like I'm helping the band out.  They most certainly deserve more recognition than they have.  They've got a nice, heavy sound (such as on the songs Martyr and Eden), but they also have some more melodic tunes (All These Things, Daylight Bleeds).  Sadly, because they're so obscure, I don't know the names of the members, nor can I find any recorded versions of their songs on YouTube (and the live recording quality is not very high).  So my best advice is to check out iTunes, their band MySpace, or PureVolume to hear their music.