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ApologetiX: New CD, Florida, St. Louis, Van Woes, Fred
Mon., Sep. 15. 2003 12:44pm EDT
J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX (That Christian Parody Band) here.
1.Concerts This Week in Florida (Wed. & Thu.) and St. Louis Area (Sat.)
2.The New ApologetiX CD: What & When?
3.More Van Woes
4.Condolences to Fred Behanna
I'm sending this email to you as late Sunday night slips into early Monday morning. This was going to be an email solely dedicated to our brand new CD, but I just realized that we should give you plenty of advance notice about our concerts this Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Furthermore, at the bottom of this email, I'm also going to give you an update on the continuing saga of the ApologetiX van, which added an exciting new chapter yesterday. It should make for some entertaining reading. You won't get the "live action" special effects we got to experience, but at least you won't have to pay for it like we will :)
Finally, we've just received word that the brother of former ApologetiX drummer Fred Behanna died yesterday, so we're including information about that.
1. CONCERTS THIS WEEK IN FLORIDA (WED. & THU.) AND ST. LOUIS AREA (SAT.)
Wednesday, September 17, 2003 6:30 PM
FREE CONCERT
Sponsored by Anastasia Baptist Church
PEDRO MENERDEZ HIGH SCHOOL
600 State Road 206 West
St. Augustine, FL 32086
CONTACT: Church 904-471-2166
Thursday, September 18, 2003 6PM
Tickets $10
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
214 Sams Avenue
New Smyrna Beach, FL 32168
CONTACT: Church 386-428-2931 OR
386-427-5370
Saturday, September 20, 2003 6:00 PM
Ticketed Event JESUS FEST
Pontoon Beach Christian Church Park
4039 Pontoon Road
Pontoon Beach, IL 62040
(15 minutes from St. Louis MO)
CONTACT: (618) 931-1317
EMAIL: noblecrew@peaknet.net
2. THE NEW APOLOGETIX CD: WHAT & WHEN?
At long last, we are pleased to give you the scoop on our upcoming CD. We've decided to call the CD "Adam Up," for a number of reasons.
We've never really told the story of Adam & Eve in our parodies (briefly mentioned Adam twice and Eve once in two songs on "Keep the Change"), let alone Cain & Abel, two of the first stories that kids learn from the Bible. Those stories have been told so many times that it's easy to just sleepwalk through them when you're reading Genesis, consequently missing the fact that these are true stories about real people. So we thought we'd address that.
"Adam Up" features two songs from Adam's perspective, one about the Fall of Adam and Eve and the other about Cain and Abel. They are two of the most powerful songs we've written, so it seemed appropriate to get Adam's name in the title.
On a more humorous note, we've released so many CDs over the years, it's getting hard for our feeble minds to remember just how many we have, especially if you count the Christmas EP CD, let alone the numerous cassettes we released in the early 1990's that are now (and forever) out of print, even though some of you diehard fans insist on including them in discographies on your websites :) So what number CD is this for us? Depends on whether you count the Christmas one. What number album is this? Depends on whether you count those old projects and/or the Christmas one. So if somebody asks, we can just say, "Add ëem up." Of course, we'll spell it "Adam Up."
It's only appropriate that a CD associated with Adam should be released in the fall. Consequently, we plan to release "Adam Up" in late November. We'll give you an official release date in the weeks to come. Stay tuned. But the important thing is you should have it in time for Christmas shopping season.
Those of you who have been email subscribers for a while know that we have a tradition of giving clues about the songs on each upcoming CD. This time around, we're going to do that and even more. There's a special webpage for you that includes the first two clues and the cover artwork, plus a special thermometer which will help you track the progress of "Adam Up" until it is ready to serve. Here's the link, especially for you:
http://www.apologetix.com/adamup
3. MORE VAN WOES
Hey, remember all those problems we were having with our 15-passenger van? We remember them like they were only yesterday ... that's because it was only yesterday when we had some more problems! :)
We drove through the night after our concert in Pittsburgh Friday evening, because we had to make it to an afternoon concert at Godstock 2003 in Fairfield IL. As we got close to Fairfield, we stopped off at the Evansville IN airport to pick up a rental car for Karl and Bill, so Keith and I could drive home early in the band van for some family commitments.
After Karl and Bill picked up the rental car, we pulled out of the lot in the band van, and had just started down the road when we heard a noise that sounded like an air raid siren, so Keith let off the gas. "I didn't even know it was coming from the van," Keith said. "It was so loud. I thought it was a cop or something. I slowed down, and it stopped."
Then we started to move again and began to hear a clanking noise. Keith looked in the rear-view mirror and saw parts flying. As he pulled to the side of the road, the back wheels locked up and the van came to a screeching halt. The drive shaft had come out of the rear end and shattered the pumpkin, where the gears are located. The repair man said the damage was pretty significant, so we're probably talking four-digit figures (that's on the left side of the decimal point, kids) again.
We all took it in stride, and with a sense of humor, knowing that God would provide, as He always does. Before you tell us it's time for a new van, consider the fact that the body of the van is in great shape, and we already bought a remanufactured engine and a reconditioned transmission earlier this summer (The total on that was well over five digits on the left side of the decimal point :)
As our drummer, Bill, points out, the three main things that could wear out in the van have now done so, so we ought to be in good shape for years to come :) Keith adds, that we basically bought a new van on the installment plan; they installed a new engine, installed a new transmission and now they'll install a new rear end :)
Don't cry for us, Argentina! Thankfully, all of this happened when and where it did. Consider this:
1.We didn't have the trailer this weekend, because we were playing at a festival. Much easier to tow.
2.We broke down near the rental car place, so we were able to rent a second vehicle for Keith and me.
3.We were driving slowly, because we were just getting onto the road outside the airport.
4.It was broad daylight, so it was safer, plus easier for Triple A to come out and tow the van.
5.We're playing in Pontoon Beach IL this weekend, which isn't that terribly far (just a few hours) from where we broke down.
6.God gave us a tremendous response at the festival we played on Saturday. It was one of the top 10 days we ever had for selling CDs. The crowd bought every "Grace Period," "Keep the Change" and "Christmas" CD we had brought (and we had plenty), plus almost all of the "Spoofernatural," and most of the other CDs. And they didn't even know about our van problems and expenses. But God did.
As mentioned above, the concert was a huge success, as we shared the stage with Bleach, Sonic Flood and Petra's John Schlitt, who was doing a solo appearance along with his backing band. We were tickled to see John Schlitt's drummer, Bryan, wearing a "Keep the Change" shirt throughout the concert. It turns out he's a big fan of the band, and he says the other guys in the band are, too. That was way cool. I'm sure Karl will be posting photos from that concert at apologetix.com, too, so check ëem out!
4. CONDOLENCES TO FRED BEHANNA
We regret to report that former ApologetiX drummer (from 1999-01) and forever friend Fred Behanna's brother died Saturday at 2:30 p.m. "He woke up Thursday telling his wife he couldn't breathe," Fred says, "and they rushed him to the hospital but he never really regained consciousness. His heart couldn't take the stress that the chemo put on it."
The past five years have been especially hard on Fred's family. In his own words, "My oldest brother, 'Chops,' as he preferred to be called, died December 26, 1997. My step dad died in May of 1999, my mom in August of 01, my 23-year-old nephew in October of 01, and now my brother 'Pierre,' which he was nicknamed in high school because he was a ladies man :) And, of course, my daughter Beth has been going through all her tribulation (with Hodgkins Disease) since 1999. She, by the way, is still in remission and is back in law school at Pitt."
Please keep Fred in your prayers. If you'd like to email him, you can do so at fred@apologetix.com.
Thanks for all your prayers and encouragement! God bless you!
Apologetically,
J.
-- J. Jackson Lead Singer/Lyricist ApologetiX (That Christian Parody Band) www.apologetix.com j@apologetix.com
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