www.xpigx.com

XXX

24
Sep

So I just got back from working with one of my all time favourite bands.

Cleveland, Ohio’s RINGWORM are undoubtedly one of the most influential metal/hardcore bands to ever come on to the scene in the early nineties and their sound and style has been a primary influence on some of the best bands of our time.

Not only an incredible live band with a huge legacy behind them, but one of the most awesome genuine and fun groups of people I have ever had the chance of touring with.

It was an honor to spend this week with Ringworm and make some rad new friends.

They had an amazing time in our country and can’t wait to get back to New Zealand.

Check out their brand new record ‘Scars’ out now on Victory Records.

29
Aug
I am happy to finally announce that after an extremely long wait… our split 7” with One x Choice is available for pre-order from Seventh Dagger! Seventh Dagger have been putting out incredible records for a number of years now from amazing bands such as Earth Crisis, xTyrantx, The World We Knew, Awaken Demons and xRepresentx just to name a few. I got to know Danny Sober from Seventh Dagger over a year ago when he got in touch about sponsoring myself and Nick from Saving Grace with awesome straight edge clothing.We had known about xSDx for years and were honored to find out that Danny was a fan of the band and wanted to work with us. We had planned for quite some time to record an Earth Crisis cover and release it digitally and when I mentioned the idea of potentially getting Seventh Dagger involved with it to Danny he immediately said “let’s do a 7”.We had always wanted to do a vinyl release with the band, so of course we said yes. Danny is the ultimate example of a straight edge hardcore lifer, who dedicates all of his time and finances into promoting the message of hardcore and the straightedge by supporting important bands, putting out incredible records and releasing an awesome line of Straight Edge clothing season after season and year after year. Earth Crisis to me has always been more than ‘just a band’.They are THE reason why I am straightedge, the driving force behind myself and most of my friends making decisions to adopt vegan and vegetarian lifestyles years back and also a massive influence on Saving Grace as a band. To find out that Karl and the dudes from EC were stoked with this release and are into my band and the idea of touring together one day made me feel like a little kid to say the absolute least! In my opinon, Earth Crisis always have been and always will be the most important band in hardcore… bar none. This new 7” contains two previously unreleased track plus an Earth Crisis cover from each band with One x Choice covering the old school track ‘No Allegiance’ from 1992’s All Out War and with Saving Grace we covered ‘End Begins’ from Breed The Killers. One of our original tracks ‘Declaration’ features our good friend and long time road dog Drug Free Mike and the music video for that song can be viewed here. The artwork for the 7” was handled by the legendary Dave Quiggle and perfectly represents everything that this release is about. A huge thanks to Danny and Seventh Dagger, Earth Crisis, the boys in One x Choice and everyone who supports our bands and this release as well as the Facedown Records family for being so supportive and letting us do something so cool! This release is a limited pressing of 200 Gold, 200 Red and 100 Red and Gold swirl vinyl. There are some awesome pre-order deals online now with some new tee shirt options, make sure to order yours now before they all sell out (unlike Earth Crisis). http://seventhdagger.bigcartel.com

I am happy to finally announce that after an extremely long wait… our split 7” with One x Choice is available for pre-order from Seventh Dagger!

Seventh Dagger have been putting out incredible records for a number of years now from amazing bands such as Earth Crisis, xTyrantx, The World We Knew, Awaken Demons and xRepresentx just to name a few.

I got to know Danny Sober from Seventh Dagger over a year ago when he got in touch about sponsoring myself and Nick from Saving Grace with awesome straight edge clothing.
We had known about xSDx for years and were honored to find out that Danny was a fan of the band and wanted to work with us.

We had planned for quite some time to record an Earth Crisis cover and release it digitally and when I mentioned the idea of potentially getting Seventh Dagger involved with it to Danny he immediately said “let’s do a 7”.
We had always wanted to do a vinyl release with the band, so of course we said yes.

Danny is the ultimate example of a straight edge hardcore lifer, who dedicates all of his time and finances into promoting the message of hardcore and the straightedge by supporting important bands, putting out incredible records and releasing an awesome line of Straight Edge clothing season after season and year after year.

Earth Crisis to me has always been more than ‘just a band’.
They are THE reason why I am straightedge, the driving force behind myself and most of my friends making decisions to adopt vegan and vegetarian lifestyles years back and also a massive influence on Saving Grace as a band.

To find out that Karl and the dudes from EC were stoked with this release and are into my band and the idea of touring together one day made me feel like a little kid to say the absolute least!

In my opinon, Earth Crisis always have been and always will be the most important band in hardcore… bar none.

This new 7” contains two previously unreleased track plus an Earth Crisis cover from each band with One x Choice covering the old school track ‘No Allegiance’ from 1992’s All Out War and with Saving Grace we covered ‘End Begins’ from Breed The Killers.

One of our original tracks ‘Declaration’ features our good friend and long time road dog Drug Free Mike and the music video for that song can be viewed here.

The artwork for the 7” was handled by the legendary Dave Quiggle and perfectly represents everything that this release is about.

A huge thanks to Danny and Seventh Dagger, Earth Crisis, the boys in One x Choice and everyone who supports our bands and this release as well as the Facedown Records family for being so supportive and letting us do something so cool!

This release is a limited pressing of 200 Gold, 200 Red and 100 Red and Gold swirl vinyl.

There are some awesome pre-order deals online now with some new tee shirt options, make sure to order yours now before they all sell out (unlike Earth Crisis).

http://seventhdagger.bigcartel.com

11
Jul

14) Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15) and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

Hebrews 2:14-15
6
Jul

Today my boys Creations released their brand new video for “The Wolf, The Clothes” from their upcoming album entitled ‘The Gospel’.

It’s been a pleasure working with the band since the beginning of their career and watching them develop into the fierce live act and successful band that they have become.

Their first show was opening up an all ages venue in Newcastle, Australia when we were there on tour with For Today in 2009, we stayed at Jonny’s house for a few days and got to know the guys.

I became friends with the guys and ended up taking them on as a management client when I was representing a handful of bands and was able to help them out with touring the USA and finding a good record label.

I eventually sold them off to a bigger and better management firm, which was always the goal.

I’m proud of what we achieved together and stoked that everything has worked out well with Mediaskare (great label and great dudes) and their relocation to California.

Since then Saving Grace have toured with Creations twice, taking them out on our headliner run in NZ last summer and most recently on the INRI Clothing Young Bloods tour in the US this April… great times!

Make sure to catch Creations on tour all over the USA this summer and definitely pick up a copy of ‘The Gospel’ when it drops on Rite of Passage/Mediaskare Records August 16th.

www.riteofpassagerecords.com
www.mediaskare.com
www.facebook.com/creationsHC 

14
Jun
If I could go back in time ten years ago and tell the teenage me that today my band would be signed to Facedown Records there is no way I would have believed it… When we started Saving Grace close to seven years ago we were just kids who had no idea about who we were, we were just trying to start something new and we wanted to make it about God. This was a strange concept for both Nick and I as we both grew up completely outside of Christian circles and both had a troubled and dark history, far removed from church, Christian spirituality and we were both deeply rooted in the darker side of hard secular music. Two misunderstood kids who met through a mutual love for heavy music, who didn’t fit in at high school; pissed off at the world and dreaming of doing nothing, but performing music in front of whoever would listen. God is so gracious and so loving, that His heart is to see His kids grow up and do what their heart desires, whilst bringing glory to His name and doing work for His kingdom. Years down the track we have travelled all over the world, playing to thousands of people proclaiming the truth of the gospel, performing the heaviest music we could have ever imagined writing, filled with anointing and favour… that we do not deserve. We have headlined many tours, played countless festivals, played with pretty much every band we ever dreamed of even seeing live and are about to put out our third album with the dream record label. I could ramble on for hours about the ups and downs, trials, travels, terrors, blessings and blunders of being in a touring band, but all in all I am just so thankful to be playing music with my best friends and doing it for Christ, growing in faith and experience with every new day. The teenage me would have lost his mind over and over during the course of the last few years. We often find ourselves saying “If it all ends today, I would be more than content because this has been so much more than we could have ever dreamt” and then God opens another door… What’s next? only He knows. ‘The King is Coming’ available Winter 2011 on Facedown Records

If I could go back in time ten years ago and tell the teenage me that today my band would be signed to Facedown Records there is no way I would have believed it…

When we started Saving Grace close to seven years ago we were just kids who had no idea about who we were, we were just trying to start something new and we wanted to make it about God.

This was a strange concept for both Nick and I as we both grew up completely outside of Christian circles and both had a troubled and dark history, far removed from church, Christian spirituality and we were both deeply rooted in the darker side of hard secular music.

Two misunderstood kids who met through a mutual love for heavy music, who didn’t fit in at high school; pissed off at the world and dreaming of doing nothing, but performing music in front of whoever would listen.

God is so gracious and so loving, that His heart is to see His kids grow up and do what their heart desires, whilst bringing glory to His name and doing work for His kingdom.

Years down the track we have travelled all over the world, playing to thousands of people proclaiming the truth of the gospel, performing the heaviest music we could have ever imagined writing, filled with anointing and favour… that we do not deserve.

We have headlined many tours, played countless festivals, played with pretty much every band we ever dreamed of even seeing live and are about to put out our third album with the dream record label.

I could ramble on for hours about the ups and downs, trials, travels, terrors, blessings and blunders of being in a touring band, but all in all I am just so thankful to be playing music with my best friends and doing it for Christ, growing in faith and experience with every new day.

The teenage me would have lost his mind over and over during the course of the last few years.

We often find ourselves saying “If it all ends today, I would be more than content because this has been so much more than we could have ever dreamt” and then God opens another door…

What’s next? only He knows.


‘The King is Coming’ available Winter 2011 on Facedown Records