The Choir

The Choir is an atmospheric Christian alternative rock band, led by Derri Daugherty on guitar and vocals, Steve Hindalong on drums—who also writes most of the band's lyrics—along with Tim Chandler on bass, Dan Michaels on saxophone and lyricon and Marc Byrd on guitar, the latter of whom was added to the band's official lineup in 2005.

Each band member also has worked on numerous projects outside of The Choir: Hindalong produced the successful City On A Hill series of worship albums, co-writing the well-known song "God of Wonders" with fellow band-mate Byrd. Daugherty has been a member of contemporary Christian "supergroup" The Lost Dogs since 1991, with Hindalong recently joining the group. Chandler has been the bass player for Daniel Amos for many years, pre-dating his work with The Choir. Byrd was a member of Common Children, and recorded with his wife Christine Glass as Glassbyrd.

History

The Choir was originally formed as Youth Choir in the early 1980s by Derri Daugherty and Steve Hindalong. The two songwriters had been introduced by mutual friend, bassist Tim Chandler, who was touring with Daniel Amos along with Daugherty, who was the band's roadie and sound man at the time.^[1] Hindalong and Daugherty quickly became friends and a songwriting team. Youth Choir became part of the Calvary Chapel Christian punk and alternative music scene, which also included the bands Undercover, Crumbächer, Altar Boys and 4-4-1.

The music of The Choir has been described by the Los Angeles Times as "magical songs that combine strains of murky psychedelia with pure pop." Billboard praised the band for its "dark poetic leanings, effects-laden guitars and strong melodic hooks." In 1984, Youth Choir became the first band ever to play at the Cornerstone Festival, the preeminent Christian arts and music festival in the United States. By 1986, the band dropped the "Youth" from its name and began calling itself simply The Choir. Hindalong began writing most of the lyrics for the band at this point, songs that are known for their vulnerability and honesty, particularly about the challenges inherent in romantic relationships and the simple joys of family life.^[1]

Although the band has long had a passionate cult following among listeners of Christian alternative music, that did not translate into great financial success within the Contemporary Christian music, or CCM, industry, nor did it lead to a successful mainstream crossover experienced by later groups like Switchfoot and Sixpence None the Richer, members of which have pointed to The Choir as a creative influence. As a result, the band nearly called it quits in 1996 after their final U.S. tour, a few years after Daugherty, Hindalong and Michaels moved from their homes in Southern California to Nashville, Tennessee, since much of the CCM industry is now based there. The difficulty of this cross-country move also made its way into the lyrics of the band's songs, primarily Speckled Bird. Nevertheless, the band continued recording, and received a Grammy Award nomination for their 2000 release, Flap Your Wings.

In 2005, The Choir returned to the dreamlike rock sound of Chase the Kangaroo and Circle Slide with its most recent studio album, O How the Mighty Have Fallen, thanks to the influence of producer and new band member Marc Byrd. Released independently, the album deals with more personal topics than much of their later work, touching on some painful subjects in the recent lives of the band members.

On August 19, 2005, The Choir played a 20th anniversary concert at Mariners Church in Irvine, California along with 4-4-1, Altar Boys, Crumbächer and Undercover, in order to acknowledge the Christian alternative music scene which developed under the aegis of Calvary Chapel in the early 1980s. Although The Choir had essentially quit touring, the overwhelmingly positive response to this one-off concert led to a short series of tour dates to support O How the Mighty Have Fallen in the early part of 2006. A DVD of the Irvine concert was promised, but has yet to be released.

On November 10, 2009, The Choir confirmed on their official Facebook page that the band is currently at work recording a new, as yet untitled, studio album.^[2] No release date has been specified, but video from the recording sessions has been posted on The Choir's YouTube page.^[3]

Personnel

Current lineup

• Derri Daugherty - Lead vocals, guitars
• Steve Hindalong - Drums, vocals
• Dan Michaels - Saxophone, lyricon
• Tim Chandler - Bass guitar, vocals
• Marc Byrd - Guitars, vocals

Former members

• Mike Sauerbrey - Bass guitar
• Robin Spurs - Bass guitar, vocals

Discography

Studio albums

• 1985 Voices in Shadows
• 1986 Diamonds and Rain
• 1988 Chase the Kangaroo
• 1989 Wide-Eyed Wonder
• 1990 Circle Slide
• 1993 Kissers and Killers
• 1994 Speckled Bird
• 1996 Free Flying Soul
• 2000 Flap Your Wings
• 2005 O How the Mighty Have Fallen

Live albums

• 1997 Let It Fly
• 2000 Live at Cornerstone 2000: Plugged
• 2000 Live at Cornerstone 2000: Unplugged

Compilations

• 1995 Love Songs and Prayers: A Retrospective
• 2001 Never Say Never: The First 20 Years

EPs

• 1986 Shades of Gray

Non-album singles

• 1985 "I Can't Take It" b/w "Here in the Night (live)" (7" single)
• 2004 "Travelin' Light (demo)" (digital download)
• 2006 "The Sun Also Rises" (MySpace music stream)

Video appearances

• 1989 Wide-Eyed Wonder Videos (includes two music videos and feature-length documentary)
• 1996 Sled Dog concept video
• 1996 Tattoo Video Hoopla (includes an entire live performance from Cornerstone '96)

Appearances on other works

• 1989 The Myrrh Radio Collection, Volume 1
• 1993 Brow Beat: Unplugged Alternative ["Wilderness" (acoustic version)]
• 1993 Third Wave ["Kissers and Killers"]
• 1994 Can You Dig It? ["Kissers and Killers"]
• 1994 Strong Hand of Love ["Tip of My Tongue"]
• 1995 Contemporary Adult Music for the 90's ["Wilderness"]
• 1996 Orphans of God ["Tip of My Tongue"]
• 1996 Seltzer: Modern Rock to Settle Your Soul ["The Ocean"]
• 1998 Grab Bag Candy Sampler, Volume 1 ["Flowing Over Me" (demo version)]
• 2003 Contemporary Christian Hits: A Collage ["Grace"]

External links

• The Choir's official website
• Voices in Shadows - fan website

References