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Sons of Korah (band)

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Sons of Korah
Sons of Korah performing in 2017
Background information
OriginGeelong, Victoria, Australia
Genres
Years active1994–present
Labels
  • Mustard
  • Wordsong Artists
  • 5ive
Members
  • Matthew Jacoby
  • Mike (Spike) Avery
  • Mike Follent
  • Rod Wilson
  • Anna Waters
Past members
  • Richard Beechey
  • Jason Coghill
  • Marcus Hayden
  • Jayden Lee
  • Mike McCarthy
  • Ann-Maree Keefe
  • Rod Gear
  • Bruce Walker
Websitesonsofkorah.com

Sons of Korah are an Australian Christian band founded in 1994 in Geelong. The band's name references the Old Testament family of that name. The group put Psalms to music,[1] using them as lyrics, almost verbatim.[2] As of 2014, the band has interpreted over 50 of the 150 Psalms into songs including, notably, the Psalms' theme of longing for justice. Founding mainstay, Matthew Jacoby (lead vocals, guitar) explained, "the psalms are important today because we tend to romanticise spirituality a lot and these songs present biblical spirituality in its original form, very real and yet present in such stunning poetic form. It is a perfect blend of spiritual realism with aesthetic and artistic integrity."[3]

History

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Sons of Korah were formed in 1994 while founding members Matthew Jacoby, Jason Coghill and Rod Gear attended the Reformed Theological College in Geelong. In 1996 the band recorded their first album Hand to the Plough. After this release, Coghill left the band, however he returned briefly to help record their second album, Light of Life in 1998, which was issued via Mustard Records.[4] It was recorded live-in-the-studio on analogue reel-to-reel.[5][6] Karen and Paul Gallagher of EvangelNow! (The Online magazine of the Assemblies of God in Australia) observed, "There is a warm, folk feel to this album that both stirs and soothes the soul. Encouraging listening."[4]

As a solo artist, Coghill continued to record music based on the Psalms.[7] Redemption Songs, Sons of Korah's third album, was released in November 2000.[8] For that album the line-up was Coghill on backing vocals; Gear on double bass, bass guitar, lead guitar, piano, solo nylon guitar, backing vocals and cello; Jacoby on lead vocals and guitar; together with Richard Beechey on drums and percussion; and Marcus Hayden on backing vocals.[9]

2001 saw the release of a box set of their recorded albums. The box set included a re-recorded EP version of their first album Hand to the Plough.[10] In 2002 Hayden left the band to pursue a solo career.[11] Jayden Lee joined in 2004 and helped write many of the songs for their next album, Resurrection. Gear did not participate in its or the subsequent tour, while he worked on his solo album.[12] Lee left the band in 2008 and moved to the United States. Mike McCarthy then joined as the group's lead guitarist. Gear also returned to the band after recording his solo album, Barak. After appearing on Ressurrection and Rain as a backing vocalist, Ann-Maree Keefe joined Sons of Korah on tour and often opened their concerts as a solo artist.[13][14]

Rain, their sixth album, was released in 2008. Justin Michael for Sight Magazine commented on the "amount of light and shade" in the album,[15] while William Chong called it "An enthralling musical journey through some of the Bible's most enduring psalms."[16] Cross Rhythms' Andrew Coe rated it at 9-out-of-10, and explained, "Using the words of the psalms pretty much as they are, rather than simply as an inspiration, is a bold move and really focuses the listener on the Scripture. Rain is a beautiful album which will have you reaching for your Bible."[17] Bruce Walker joined the band after the release of Rain, replacing McCarthy as the group's lead guitarist. In May 2008 four of their albums were listed in the top 10 sold for a week by American retail chain's Family Christian Stores, Resurrection (No. 2), Shelter (No. 4), Light of Life (No. 6) and Redemption Songs (No. 7).[18]

The band's next album Wait was released in 2011 and they appeared on ABC Radio National's The Rhythm Divine promoting it.[19] On a few occasions past members of the band have had a chance to join again on stage. In 2012, Hayden played a few songs at a concert in Melbourne.[20] Lee also played with the band again while they toured the United States in 2013.[21] Refuge was released in 2014. In 2016 Anna Waters replaced Keefe as backing vocalist while Keefe pursued a solo career. Fractures is their newest album released in February 2017.[22] Sons of Korah regularly toured Australia, appearing at Christian festivals: Easterfest[23] and Black Stump.[24] They also toured the United Kingdom,[25] The Netherlands[26] and the United States. In the UK they performed on BBC Radio York shows to support their tours.

Members

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Discography

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Studio albums

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  • Hand to the Plough (1996) – (Limited Independent release)
  • Light of Life (May 1999) – (Mustard Records/Wordsong Artists) (MRCD002)[27]
    • Light of Life: 20th Anniversary Re-Release (2014) – (Wordsong Artists)
  • Redemption Songs (November 2000) – (Wordsong Artists) (WACD001)[9]
  • Shelter (November 2002) – (Wordsong Artists) (WACD002)[28]
  • Resurrection (March 2005) – (Wordsong Artists) (WACD003)[29]
  • Rain (August 2008) – (Wordsong Artists) (WACD006)
  • Wait (2011) – (Wordsong Artists) (WACD009)
  • Refuge (2014) – (5ive) (WACD011)
  • Fractures (25 March 2017) – (5ive) (WACD012)
  • Man of Sorrows (2023) – (WACD013)

Extended plays

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  • Hand to the Plough – (Wordsong Artists, 2001) (WACD001HP)[30]

Live albums

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  • Live Recordings Vol.1 (Wordsong Artists, 2010)
  • Live Recordings Vol.2 (Wordsong Artists, 2013)

Video albums

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  • Sons of Korah: Live (Wordsong Artists, 2010)
  • Sons of Korah: Live in the Netherlands (Wordsong Artists, 2013)

References

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  1. ^ "Australian Acoustic Group 'Sons of Korah' Are Sold Out to the Psalms". ScriptureSong.com. 1 July 2012. Archived from the original on 23 October 2013. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  2. ^ Telian, Jessica (26 December 2017). "Singing Psalms". Kindred Grace. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  3. ^ "Matt Jacoby Reveals All – An Interview with the Sons of Korah". The Blah Blah. 3 June 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  4. ^ a b Gallagher, Karen; Gallagher, Paul (August 1999). "Album Reviews: Light of Life – [Sons of Korah/Mustard Records]". EvangelNow! The Online magazine of the Assemblies of God in Australia. Archived from the original on 12 November 1999. Retrieved 20 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^ Jacoby, Matt. "Sons of Korah Blog, Light of Life was our first full studio album". matthewjacoby.tumblr.com.
  6. ^ Jacoby, Matt. "Sons of Korah Blog, Sons of Korah Alumni Report: Jason Coghill: Jason..." matthewjacoby.tumblr.com.
  7. ^ Coghill, Jason. "Ministry of Psalms – Jason Coghill". Ministry of Psalms. Archived from the original on 12 November 2009. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  8. ^ Jacoby, Matt. "Sons of Korah Blog, Behind the scenes: Psalm 24. Redemption Songs has..." matthewjacoby.tumblr.com.
  9. ^ a b Sons of Korah (Musical group); Coghill, Jason; Tunley, Laura; Krivan, Aaron; Hayden, Marcus; Krivan, Danny; Smurthwaite, Phil; Kennedy, Marita; Nair, Mureli; Gear, Rod; Beechey, Richard; Jacoby, Matthew; Noord, Carl Vander; Jacoby, Katherina (2000), Redemption Songs, Wordsong Artists, retrieved 20 February 2022
  10. ^ Cummings, Tony (22 September 2010). "Sons of Korah: Acoustic musicianaries bringing a fresh interpretation of the Psalms". Cross Rhythms. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  11. ^ Hayden, Marcus. "Marcus Hayden". SoundClick. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Sons of Korah". Sons of Korah Official Website. 21 December 2016.
  13. ^ "Announcements Sons of Korah". Northern New South Wales Seventh-day Adventist Church. 1 March 2016. Archived from the original on 2 March 2016. Retrieved 20 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  14. ^ "Ann-Maree Keefe". Aussie Grown Radio. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020. Retrieved 20 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  15. ^ Michael, Justin (8 October 2009). "Music: It's Raining Excellence for Sons of Korah". Sight Magazine. Archived from the original on 7 April 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  16. ^ Chong, William. "Review: Sons of Korah, Rain".
  17. ^ Coe, Andrew (26 July 2020). "Review: Rain – Sons of Korah". Cross Rhythms. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  18. ^ Eliezer, Christie (21 May 2008). "Sons of Korah land four hits on US chain". In Music & Media. Archived from the original on 22 February 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  19. ^ Wood, Geoff (25 August 2013). "The Psalms Project – The Rhythm Divine". Radio National (Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)). Archived from the original on 28 August 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2022. Note: additional MPEG media is available as a podcast download.
  20. ^ Jacoby, Matt. "Sons of Korah Blog, Pictures of our concert in Melbourne at St. Judes..." matthewjacoby.tumblr.com.
  21. ^ Sons of Korah. "Facebook Update". Sons of Korah FaceBook Site.
  22. ^ Parker, David (19 September 2017). "Music review: Fractures by Sons of Korah". Others Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  23. ^ TRAA (27 February 2005). "International | The Australian Gospel Music Festival". Nashville: Christian Activities. Archived from the original on 3 August 2016.
  24. ^ "2010 Black Stump Artists Announced + Tickets on Sale Now!". Aussie Christian Gigs. 26 July 2010. Archived from the original on 10 April 2013. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  25. ^ "Aussie band Sons of Korah in Town". Boston Standard. 27 April 2011. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016.
  26. ^ Maarten (18 June 2012). "Sons of Korah terug naar Nederland | Sons of Korah" [Sons of Korah Back to the Netherlands]. Sonsofkorah.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  27. ^ Sons of Korah (Musical group) (1999), Light of Life, Wordsong Artists, retrieved 20 February 2022
  28. ^ Sons of Korah (Musical group); Benjamin, Michelle; Beechey, Richard; Gear, Greg; Gear, Rod; Jacoby, Matthew; McCarthy, Michael; Morris, Ron; Thirwell, Ted (2002), Shelter, Wordsong Artists, retrieved 20 February 2022
  29. ^ Sons of Korah (Musical group); Breninger, Warren; Jacoby, Matthew; Wilson, Rod; Avery, Mike; Lee, jayden; Gear, Greg; Skinner, Gareth; Van der Nord, Laura; Brown, Richard; Keefe, Anne-Maree (2005), Resurrection, Wordsong Artists, retrieved 20 February 2022
  30. ^ Sons of Korah (Musical group) (2001), Hand to the Plough, Wordsong Artists, retrieved 20 February 2022
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